A New Act
by 7AugustBurnsRed7
Summary: Kagome is back and is happier than she has ever been with Inuyasha. What will happen as they become a family? Will their daughter carry on their legacy? (build up lasts for the first short chapters, they get longer and a whole lot better as the story progresses) (also, the cover image is what the daughter looks like, just not in the right clothing...) PLEASE READ AND REVIEW
1. Chapter 1

**Ok guys, this is my first story, so please, don't hate too much, but I would definitely appreciate reviews. Also, I've got a ton of this story done already and am just editing it right now, so updates should come pretty quickly for a while. Sorry that this starts out kinda bad, but it gets better I promise.**

**Disclaimer for the entire story:**

**I don't own any characters from the Inuyasha story, only the ones that I have created.**

Prologue

Inuyasha sniffed the air. The smell of blood and smoke was thick and almost overpowering. Of course, that was to be expected. Men like these carried that smell on them. With the amount of experience they had with it, it never washed off. Inuyasha looked to the girl beside him. Even in battle gear she was beautiful. She didn't belong out here on the battlefield. She belonged in a safe place where he could protect her. She belonged in safer times. But those didn't exist anymore. Not since the purges. The girl beside him drew her swords, cuing him to do the same. Now there was no time for thoughts about an ideal world. Now was the time for blood. They attacked and the earth shuddered beneath the fury of their assault.

Chapter 1  
17 years earlier

Inuyasha awoke that morning when the sun hit his eyes. Kagome had only been back for a few weeks and they'd only been married for one. The mark that showed the she was his mate for life was still almost fresh on her skin. He was still getting used to waking up next to her, especially after her 3 year absence. Slipping quietly out from under the covers, Inuyasha tried to get out of their bed without disturbing Kagome. It didn't work, but she pretended to stay asleep for his sake. He got dressed quickly and put on his Tetsusaiga. The demon he and Miroku were going to slay wasn't very strong, but he wasn't going to take any chances. Kagome finally woke up just before he left.

"Morning." She said

"Morning. Did I wake you?"

"Yeah, but it's okay. You about to leave for that village with Miroku?"

"Yeah, it's just the village neighboring this one. We should be back before nightfall."

"Good. Hold on and let me see you off."

She got up out of bed quickly and walked over to him.

"You don't have to do that."

"Yes I do. I'm your wife remember."

Inuyasha blushed heavily and was taken a little off guard by the kiss that met his lips. He didn't complain, but it was still another thing that he was getting used to. They said their goodbyes and Inuyasha headed out to meet Miroku.

Kagome had a big day coming up too. Today was the day that Kaede was going to start teaching her to channel her spiritual energy into a barrier. Kagome was training to be a priestess and Kaede was her teacher. Up until now, she had just dealt with medicinal herbs, treating wounds, and basic exorcisms. Though she knew it was going to be difficult, she was looking forward to starting the more advanced aspects of being a priestess. She got dressed, grabbed her bow, and headed for Kaede's house.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

11 months later

Kagome was practicing her archery with Kaede in the forest by the village. She'd improved greatly in the year that she'd been back. Kaede even said that she had surpassed Kikyo. She didn't know about that, but she did allow herself to take a little pride in her archery.

"Kagome, isn't your anniversary tomorrow?" Kaede asked.

"Yeah, Inuyasha said he had something planned."

"Do ye have any idea what it is?"

"Not really. He's managed to keep it secret from me." She said, laughing at the thought.

"Why did ye let him go off to slay that demon when your anniversary is so close?"

"I knew he'd get back in time and I didn't want Miroku to have to go alone. Sango would be devastated if anything happened to him... And furious if he made anything happen with the women. Inuyasha will keep him safe and in line."

"Ye are a very considerate woman Kagome. Inuyasha is lucky to have you."

"Thanks," Kagome said shyly, "I'm just glad we could finally be together again."

Inuyasha and Miroku were going off to slay another demon. The village was a little farther away than usual, but they would still probably make it back home about noon the following day.

"So how bad are you going to rip them off this time Miroku?" Said Inuyasha.

"I'll have you know that I charge a fair rate... For a man with a family as large as mine." He jokingly replied.

"Whatever. Just don't go feeling up the village women."

"I'm a married man Inuyasha!"

"I know, but your eyes still wander. You should be glad Sango doesn't come with us on these things. Honestly, I really don't know how you've stayed married for 4 years."

"Speaking of that," said Miroku, desperately trying to change the subject, "isn't your wedding anniversary coming up?"

"Yeah, it's tomorrow actually."

"What?!" Miroku yelled. "Why are you coming with me on this then? You should be with Kagome!"

"She told me to go. Besides, I've got a plan."

"Oh yeah," Miroku said sarcastically, "and what is it?"

Inuyasha told him his plan. Miroku made a few changes, but otherwise agreed that it was great.

"I never knew you were such a romantic Inuyasha. It seems I misjudged you."

"Yeah whatever," Inuyasha said dismissively, trying to hide the fact that he was blushing, "lets just get to the village."

"Fine, fine. It's just over the next hill."

"Good."

They continued on to the village to carry out their mission.

The next morning, while Kagome was visiting with Sango, Inuyasha and Miroku were heading back home. Inuyasha was still trying to clean off his claws. The demon had made a real mess and the smell refused to leave.

"Inuyasha, you can stop. No one else can smell it, but you." Miroku said.

"Yeah I know, but the smell is disgusting."

"Don't worry about it. It's not going to ruin your night. Kagome's nose probably isn't going to get that close to your claws tonight. Unless of course you two do that kind of thing."

"Wait, what do you mean?"

"You know, when you two... Express your love."

"Oh..." Inuyasha said, just understanding what the perverted monk was getting at, "we haven't... really... Uh... done... That."

"You can't be serious." Miroku replied incredulously. "You've been married for a year and you haven't consummated it?"

Inuyasha turned a deep shade a red. In all honesty, he'd never really thought about it. Kagome had never really made any moves to show that she wanted to, but then again, neither had he.

"So what?" Inuyasha replied defensively. "What does that matter?!"

Miroku laughed, only making Inuyasha madder and respond by punching the monk in the head. He quickly dropped the subject. Little did they know that Kagome was having a very similar conversation with Sango at that very moment.

"So Kagome, your anniversary is tonight, right?" Sango asked. They were alone in Sango's house. Most of the time they were both busy, Kagome with priestess training and Sango with her kids, so they didn't really have much time to just sit and talk anymore.

"Yeah." Kagome replied.

"Well?" Sango asked expectantly.

"Well what?" Kagome responded, not knowing what Sango was getting at.

"Come on Kagome! Do you have anything special planned?"

"Inuyasha says he has something planned, but I have no idea what it is."

"Oh, he's trying to surprise you eh? Well just make sure you make tonight fun. The first anniversary is one of the best times for that." Sango said winking. Kagome blushed, her face turning bright red.

"What do you mean Sango?"

"Oh you know. Try new things... Between the sheets."

"Oh... Um... Uh..." Kagome stammered, "We haven't really tried anything yet..."

"Wait, you've been married a year and you're still a virgin? That doesn't make any sense!"

"Well we've both been really busy. I think Inuyasha was just glad to have me back and didn't want to push his luck."

"I guess I can understand that, but you've gotta promise me something Kagome."

"Okay Sango, what is it?"

"If he doesn't make a move, you've got to."

"What? You mean, I've got to make the move?" She said, getting nervous just from the thought.

"Yes! Inuyasha doesn't know what he's doing! Even if he does try something, he'll probably botch it!"

Kagome couldn't argue with that. Inuyasha had never really been the romantic type and that probably wouldn't change tonight.

"Okay, I promise." Kagome said finally, "If he doesn't try anything, I'll make sure it happens."

"Good. You know, I was starting to wonder why you two didn't have kids yet. I was pregnant with the twins within a few weeks."

"Wow, that's fast." Kagome said, surprised.

"Well, I kinda had to move fast. Gotta keep that wandering monk's appetite sated and tied down somehow." Sango said smiling.

"Yeah, I guess so." Kagome laughed.

A few hours had passed before Miroku and Inuyasha finally arrived back at their village. Kagome saw them coming from a small hill where she was gathering herbs. Inuyasha saw her too and waved. She waved back, smiling. Inuyasha was carrying four baskets of rice and leading a boar by a piece of rope. That must have been Miroku's fee for the exorcism.

"Wow, Miroku really does rip these people off." Kagome thought to herself. "But I guess with three kids, you gotta put food on the table somehow." With her position as a priestess, the village provided for her and Inuyasha. Any other food or resources that they wanted, Inuyasha caught in the forest. Inuyasha set the food down by Miroku and Sango's house and then ran over to Kagome.

"Hey Kagome. How was your day?" Inuyasha asked, embracing her.

"It was nice. Sango and I got the chance to talk for the first time this week."

"Good, I'm glad."

"How was yours?" Kagome asked him.

"It was alright. The demon we had to slay was pretty weak. I'm sure the villagers could have taken care of it, but it's blood got everywhere. Definitely wasn't worth the long trip."

"That sounds terrible. Well don't worry. We'll have a good night tonight." She blushed lightly and winked at him. Inuyasha blushed heavily and Kagome noticed.

"Uh... Yeah... I uh... Hope so..." Inuyasha stammered.

Kagome chuckled lightly and walked back towards their house. She was looking forward to tonight.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Nightfall came and Inuyasha was leading Kagome with his hands over her eyes.

"Can I look yet?" Kagome asked, laughing but really wanting to know where she was going.

"Not yet. Soon though."

"Where are we going?"

"You'll see..."

After a couple more minutes. They stopped walking and Inuyasha removed his hands from her eyes. When she saw her surroundings, her heart skipped a beat. It was beautiful. She was by a lake near the village with the full moon reflecting brightly off of its still, mirrored surface. The air was clean, fresh, and pleasantly crisp. She noticed a blanket by the water. It had plates of delicious looking food and a large bottle of expensive-looking rice wine in the middle.

"Do you like it?" Inuyasha asked after a moment.

"I love it." Emotion clear in her voice, "It's perfect."

"Good, I'm glad."

Inuyasha breathed a mental sigh of relief. He hadn't known whether she would like this or not. Kagome had told him about some of the romantic love stories from her time, so he had based this off of what he had remembered. They sat down and began to eat. They talked about all that had passed that led up to this moment. They reminisced about how far they'd come since they first met and what allowed that to happen. Through it all they laughed. Kagome even shed a few tears.

"Hey Inuyasha, close your eyes for a second!" Kagome said excitedly.

"Huh? Why?" Inuyasha replied, confused.

"I've got a present for you." She said smiling.

"Oh. Okay." He closed his eyes and waited.

"Alright. Open!"

Inuyasha didn't notice anything at first, but then he noticed what was in her hands. She was holding his Beads of Subjugation. Inuyasha didn't know what to say.

"K-Kagome..." He stuttered.

"You don't have to say anything, I took them off because you don't need them anymore. I trust you, now more than ever. Just take this and put it on in its place." She handed him a gold necklace with a heart on the end of it. "That's the locket I made of us just before we fought Kaguya."

"I remember. That was the first time we kissed. I was transforming into my demon form and your kiss stopped it and saved me." Said Inuyasha, thinking back to that day.

"I replaced the pictures in it while I was stuck on the other side with happier ones that I had taken, since the ones in there were of us yelling at each other, but otherwise it's the same."

"Thank you Kagome. Thank you." He said, putting on the necklace.

After that, they just sat leaning against each other looking out over the lake.

"Thank you Inuyasha." Kagome whispered.

"For what?" Inuyasha asked, confused since he didn't have a gift like that for her.

"For being with me."

"Ha. I should be thanking you for that. I put you through so much danger and made you upset so many times, yet you still stayed with me. I don't know why, but I'm happy you did." Inuyasha admitted.

Kagome's only reply was to snuggle closer to Inuyasha.

After a little while longer of sitting in silence, enjoying each other's company, Inuyasha said, "We should probably head home."

"Yeah." Kagome agreed.

They walked home, hand-in-hand. They didn't think that anyone was awake, but Sango and Miroku were spying quietly from their window, smiling knowingly. Inuyasha and Kagome entered their house and sat on their bed. Suddenly, Kagome grabbed him and greeted him with a passionate kiss. He didn't fight against it and kissed her back. Kagome pushed him down to the bed and started to take off her kimono.

"Kagome... What..." Inuyasha said before Kagome cut him off.

"Just trying something new." Kagome said softly, winking and smiling seductively. Inuyasha smiled and then brought her close to him. It was the best night of their lives.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

They awoke the next day without any urgency. Both of them had been given a day off from their respective duties. At first they didn't say anything. They just laid there in each others embrace.

"Good morning." Kagome eventually said, laughing a little bit.

"Morning." Inuyasha said back smiling.

Kagome prepared breakfast and they ate together. After they finished they went over to see Miroku, Sango, and their kids. The twins saw them first. Umi and Nami ran towards them screaming their greetings.

"Uncle Inuyasha, aunt Kagome!" They yelled delightedly.

"Hey you two!" Kagome said kneeling down and picking up the two and spinning them above her head causing them to giggle uncontrollably. Sango came out first, followed by Miroku.

"Oh Kagome, Inuyasha!" Sango said surprised to see them. "How was your anniversary?"

Both Kagome and Inuyasha blushed.

"It was... Nice." Kagome said.

"Yeah... Nice." Inuyasha agreed.

Miroku and Sango looked each other and smiled knowingly. They invited the group into their house Umi and Nami still hanging onto Kagome's kimono.

Inside they saw a mostly clean house, except where Sango and Miroku's one year old son, Kaze, was playing. Sango called Kagome over to help her with something in the other room. Her real motive was to talk about last night. Miroku was planning to do the same thing with Inuyasha.

"Hey girls, why don't you go play outside." Miroku told Umi and Nami.

"Okay dad." And they ran off pretending that they were birds.

"Alright, Inuyasha. How'd it go?"

"What?" Inuyasha said, caught a little off guard. "How'd what go?"

"Don't play dumb!" Miroku said. "How'd last night go?"

"Oh, I gotcha." Said Inuyasha, catching Miroku's meaning, "It went well. She really liked the dinner, think she had a little too much rice wine though."

"Hey that's not always a bad thing." Miroku said smiling.

"Yeah no kidding." Inuyasha said, thinking back to the night before. "We walked home and before I knew it, she was taking off her clothes and we were in bed."

"Inuyasha, you dog you." Miroku said chuckling. Even Inuyasha laughed, which was surprising since he didn't normally like being called a dog.

"I'll admit, it was the best night of my life..."

"I told you." Miroku said knowingly.

Meanwhile, Sango and Kagome were in the other room having a similar conversation.

"Alright Kagome, don't play the shy girl with me. What happened last night? I want to know everything." Sango said eagerly.

"Alright, alright. Calm down." Kagome told her, putting up her hands. "I'll tell you don't worry."

"Okay so start at the beginning of the night."

"Right. Okay. Inuyasha told me that he had a surprise for me and that it was time to go. Then we walked for awhile with his hands covering my eyes. When we finally got where we were going, he let me see again. It was beautiful. We were by that lake not far from here. The full moon was shining brightly off of the surface. He had a really nice dinner set up by the lake and a big bottle of rice wine."

"Oh that's so romantic!" Sango interjected, "I had no idea that Inuyasha had a romantic bone in him!"

"Neither did I." Kagome admitted. "I was really surprised."

"Okay so what happened next?" Asked Sango.

"Well, we ate and talked."

"What'd you talk about?" Interrupted Sango.

"Hold on, I'm getting there. Okay, so we were talking about all the stuff that's happened since I first came here. We reminisced about all we've been through together and what brought us to this point. It was great. I learned so much about how he felt about all the stuff that's happened. He remembered things that I thought for sure that he'd forgotten. Probably drank too much during it, but that's okay, I think he did too."

"Ooo... Two drunk lovers. So what happened next?" Sango asked, desperately wanting to know more.

"Well, for awhile, we just sat there. We didn't talk, we just sat there. He was holding me and I was snuggled up close to him."

"Aww. That's SO cute!" Sango said, a little louder than she'd meant to. She covered her mouth hoping the guys in the other room hadn't heard. After a moment, they just laughed it off and Kagome continued the story.

"Then we started walking home, holding hands. When we got home we sat on the bed. I could tell that he was going to try something, but that he was nervous, so I made the move for him. I grabbed him and threw him onto the bed and then it just kinda happened." Kagome finished the story blushing slightly.

"Ooh. Spicy. I like it." Sango said smiling. "So how was it?"

"Oh it was amazing!" Kagome said without hesitation, "I only wish that we had started sooner. It just kinda flowed. It was so natural."

"I know!" Sango said airily, "That's just how it is when you're in love. It's so romantic!"

Eventually the two groups met back up. After awhile the two groups said their goodbyes and Umi and Nami came in to join in the farewells. Inuyasha and Kagome walked back to their house. Neither had realized how late it had gotten. It was already night time. They entered the house and ate dinner. As they were walking to bed, Kagome winked and skipped into the bedroom undoing her kimono. Inuyasha smiled and followed quickly, taking a hint for, perhaps, the first time in his life.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Two weeks later

Kagome awoke that morning feeling a little off. That wasn't too abnormal. She'd felt like that for the past couple days. Inuyasha was gone. He was off with Miroku on another exorcism mission and probably wouldn't be back until later that night. Kaede had told her to take a few days off to recover from whatever was bothering her, so she decided to go see Sango. She knew that she was probably busy with Umi, Nami, and Kaze, but she wanted some company. She walked over and saw Sango playing with her kids outside.

"Hey Sango." She said, catching Sango by surprise.

"Oh, hey Kagome. You feeling any better?"

"No not really."

"Oh I'm sorry. Well let's head inside and I'll get you something to drink."

The kids stopped and they ran inside. Sango and Kagome followed. Kagome sat down and Sango went and poured her some tea. She set it down in front of her and sat down beside her.

"Thanks Sango. I know you're busy, but I just kinda got lonely."

"Don't worry about it Kagome. You're always welcome."

Kagome smiled and said, "You're the best Sango."

"Hey Kagome," Sango started, an idea forming in her mind, "it's your stomach that's bothering you right?"

"Yeah. Why?" Kagome asked, clearly confused.

"Have been throwing up and eating more than usual?"

"Yeah, how did you know that?"

"Just a hunch. One more question. Kagome, are you late?" Sango asked.

Kagome finally understood what she was getting at. She thought back. She was late, by a good bit actually. Kagome had no idea that it would happen this quickly.

"Yeah. I am." Kagome answered slowly, still trying to process this new realization, "Sango, is this what happened when you've been pregnant?"

"Yes, exactly what happened for me."

"Wow... I just didn't think it would happen after only a few times." Kagome said.

"It only takes once." Sango replied.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Should I tell Inuyasha?" Kagome asked, "I don't know how he'll react. He's never really liked children."

"Of course you should tell him. It's his child!" Sango yelled quickly. "If he loves you Kagome, which he does, he'll love the child."

"I hope you're right." Kagome said.

Later that night, Kagome heard Inuyasha come through the door. He was trying to be quiet as possible, probably thinking she was asleep.

"Inuyasha, in here." Kagome whispered, surprising him.

"Oh, Kagome, you're awake."

"Yes, I waited up for you."

"Kagome, you didn't have to do that." He said softly.

"Yes I did." Kagome said, her throat tightening up, "I've got something important to tell you."

"What is it Kagome?" Inuyasha asked, his voice full of concern.

"I... I think... I think I'm pregnant. I think I'm pregnant Inuyasha." Kagome struggled to get out.

At first, Inuyasha's face was shocked. He'd been taken completely off guard. However, before Kagome could say anything else, Inuyasha took her into his tight embrace.

"Inuyasha..." It was all Kagome could get out.

"Kagome, I'm so happy. This is great." Inuyasha said into her ear.

"You mean, you're not mad?" Kagome asked, almost not believing his reaction.

"Of course not! We've got a child coming, we're going to start a family!"

Kagome had never been so happy before. Inuyasha, the man she loved, had given her a child and they were going to raise it together.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

9 months later

The day of delivery was fast approaching. Inuyasha was starting to stress out. Kagome and the whole rest of the village was trying to calm him down, but it wasn't working.

"What if something happened to you Kagome? What if something happened to you and the baby?" Inuyasha snapped one day, "What if I couldn't protect you?"

"Inuyasha, I trust you." This caught him off guard, "I know you'll protect us, from everything."

Suddenly the earth shook. It shook again. And again.

"Dammit. This is just perfect." Inuyasha growled.

Miroku rushed into the house.

"Inuyasha, get ready. There's a demon coming and it's big." Miroku said.

"Yeah I know." Inuyasha said, he'd just caught its scent. "Can you get Kagome to your house? I know you and Sango can protect her. I'll take care of the demon."

"Fine. Will do. We'll bring Kaede too." Miroku said.

"Good, now get going." Inuyasha growled.

Miroku grabbed Kagome who was telling Inuyasha to be careful. They headed to Miroku's house. When they got there, Sango was already in battle gear and the children were in the back of the house.

"Stay here with Kagome." Miroku told Sango, "I'm going to get Kaede. All this stress could put Kagome into labor and then we'll need Kaede's help." Then he ran out to get Kaede, passing Inuyasha who was on his way to meet this demon. They nodded at each other and kept running.

Inuyasha arrived at a clearing. The demon was there. It was the size of 5 full grown men and had huge horns on its head. Inuyasha had managed to intercept the demon far enough away from the village so that no one would get hurt. He drew his Tetsusaiga.

"You picked the wrong village to mess with demon!" Inuyasha growled.

"Ha! What could a half-demon do to me?" The demon roared. "Half-breeds aren't good enough for anything, but my dinner!"

The demon was faster than Inuyasha had expected. He barely avoided the punch, which left a massive crater in the clearing.

"You're gonna regret that you bastard! WIND SCAR!" Inuyasha roared, swing his sword through the air.

Five streaks of light left the sword and struck the demon. The demon resisted at first, but eventually lost its footing and was obliterated by the blast. Inuyasha spat bitterly on the ground.

"No one threatens Kagome!"

Inuyasha walked back and as he entered back into the village the sound hit him. It was a baby crying. He raced to Miroku and Sango's house and threw open the door and there they were. The two most important people in his life were laying on a bed in front of him. He was speechless, so Kagome spoke for him.

"Come meet your baby girl."

He walked over, fell to his knees, and took the girl into his arms. Her name was Saiai. She was the most beautiful thing that he'd ever seen.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

5 years later

Two small forms raced through the trees of the forest. Suddenly another form jumped down from the trees.

"IRON-REAVER SOUL STEALER!" The form screamed.

The two demons were shredded and a small girl stood over them.

"Damn!" The girl cursed, "The demons around here are so weak. They aren't even a challenge."

Suddenly, the bushes behind her rustled. She dug her claws into her palms and quickly turned around.

"BLADES OF BLOOD!"

"What the hell?!" A familiar voice shouted. "Watch it!"

"Oops, sorry dad..." Said the girl.

Inuyasha looked at his young daughter. She had inherited her mother's looks. Her long black hair was unique among all the dog demons he'd ever met. Even her dog ears, which matched her fathers in everything but the color, were black. The only things on her face that weren't exactly like her mother were her eyes and her fangs . She had his golden eyes and he liked that.

"You're getting good. You'll be killing big demons in no time." He told her, "Now let's get home before your mother kills me."

"I'll race you," Saiai, who preferred to be called Sai, challenged, "I bet I can beat you."

"Not on your life." Inuyasha replied smiling.

They set off at a superhuman pace. Sai was fast, even compared to him. It never failed to surprise him how powerful she was at such a young age. Nevertheless, he won the race, but not by much. However, he did allow her to go through the door first.

"Ah, you're back! How are you Sai?" Kagome asked.

"I'm alright. I was close to beating dad home this time." She beamed.

"Ohh. Good job. It seems your dad is getting old." Kagome said smiling at Inuyasha.

"Hey! What is that supposed to mean?!" Inuyasha retorted, "The girl is just fast..."

"Thanks dad!" She said sticking out her tongue.

"Alright, that's enough you two." Kagome said chuckling, "It's time for lunch."

They all sat down and began to eat. They were a happy family. No powerful demons had dared to attack the village ever since the day Saiai was born.

Kaede had died the year before of old age. Kagome was now the head priestess in the village. Neither she nor Inuyasha had aged a day. Inuyasha because of his demon blood and Kagome due to her immense spiritual powers. They far exceeded those of Kaede, Kikyo, and even the famous Midoriko. Those powers, not by any will of Kagome, were preserving her life and her body. She would live indefinitely. No one knew if she would ever die. Sai had inherited her mother's spiritual powers as well. She was a half-demon priestess. The first in history. It was clear that she would be immensely powerful when she grew up.

Inuyasha believed that she should start her training as a priestess early and so, the next night, told her that she would begin learning under her mother.

"Sai, you need get a hold on your spiritual powers before you can start enhancing your demonic ones." Inuyasha told her, "The two are inherently at odds and thus must be controlled. Training as a priestess is difficult and must be started at a young age."

"Your father is right." Kagome agreed with Inuyasha, "It will be incredibly difficult to balance the two sources of power, so if you can get a hold of one from a very early age, then training in the other will become so much easier."

"Okay, mom, just tell me what I have to do." Sai responded, surprising both of her parents.

Kagome smiled. She and Inuyasha had never been more proud of their daughter. She was so mature at such a young age.

"We'll start tomorrow, bright and early." Kagome said happily, "Get a good night's rest."

"Right!" She said excitedly and she hurried off to bed.

They allowed her to fall asleep and stood gazing over her lovingly.

"She's going to be one strong woman." Inuyasha said thoughtfully.

"Yes she will." Kagome agreed, "Well, we should follow her example. We're gonna need to sleep too. Knowing her, she'll train so hard, we'll end up being more tired than her."

Inuyasha laughed, but agreed with her and then followed Saiai into bed and into sleep.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

5 years later

"Totosai! Hurry up! I want my swords!" Sai yelled at the old sword smith.

"Calm down child! They'll be done when they're done!" Totosai yelled back at the girl. He then faced Inuyasha, who was standing beside his daughter. "Inuyasha, are you sure it's a good idea to give this girl two demon swords."

"For the last time, yes Totosai!" Said Inuyasha, clearly losing his patience, having been asked this a thousand times, "The swords are made from my fangs and I bear no malice against humanity. They won't possess her, they'll protect her."

"I know, but I still don't know if it's a good idea to give such a young girl two swords that are the equal of Tetsusaiga and, when combined, surpass even Sesshomaru's Bakusaiga." Totosai replied.

"Shut up and just make the swords." Inuyasha snapped. "I'll make sure she doesn't misuse them."

"I just don't see why she needs them! We all know that she's going to surpass Midoriko and become a warrior priestess. Then I'll have to forge her a priestess' sword. Won't that be powerful enough?"

The punch came from nowhere. Inuyasha's fist left a huge knot on Totosai's forehead.

"Just forge the damn swords Totosai."

"Fine. They're actually already done. I have them with me."

"Yes!" Sai, who had surprisingly had kept quiet for more than 5 seconds, screamed, "I can finally have them!"

She took them as soon as Totosai pulled the out.

"Thanks Totosai!" And with that ran off.

"Wow. She thanked you. I wasn't expecting that..." Inuyasha said dryly.

"Neither was I. I guess Kagome's influence shows through every now and again..."

"Hey! What is that supposed to mean?!" Inuyasha yelled, suddenly on the defensive.

"Nevermind that. I have the bow made from your fang here with me as well. Would you like it now?" "Yeah I'll take it to Kagome to be purified." Inuyasha said, "I didn't expect you to have the bow done so quickly."

"Neither did I, seeing as I've never made a bow before, but it went smoother than I expected."

"Alright, so when she masters her weapons, we have to break them and bring them to you to reforge with her fangs right?"

"Yes, that will allow her to truly master the blades and herself. Knowing her, though, it probably won't take her long to master what she has." Said the grizzled smith, "So, Inuyasha, how is her training as a priestess going?"

"It's like you said, she's definitely going to surpass Midoriko like her mother did and will likely surpass Kagome, but she has a long way to go yet."

"So I have time to take a break before I have to forge a priestess' blade?" Totosai asked hopefully.

"Yeah, I think you're safe old man."

The next day, Sai was training with her new blades Mondai and Jikan. They were both straight blades like Sesshomaru's old Tokijin. She may have only been ten, but she was good with a blade. It didn't take her long to figure out how to channel her demonic energy into the blades. After a few days, she was starting to use Mondai's Dragon Wave technique and Jikan's Dragon Scar technique. After this she began training with her father more than her mother, trying to increase her demonic powers, though she still kept up her training as a priestess. After about 2 months with the blades, she discovered their combined, ultimate technique. She discovered the Dragon Rift. It would be awhile before her demonic powers would grow to allow her to bring these techniques to their full potential, but she had them and was ready to practice.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Sesshomaru still visited the village often to see Rin. He had become much more powerful in the years following the defeat of Naraku, but had not forgotten Rin who had grown into a young woman by that point. She was 22 and Kagome finally gave her permission to begin traveling with Sesshomaru again. This made him happy, though he did not show it, as usual. Over the years, Rin's devotion to Sesshomaru never wavered and she even developed romantic feelings for him. Sesshomaru held these same feelings for Rin, though he was unwilling to admit them. He took her with him one day and allowed her to live with him in the castle he had established as the center of power for his empire on the rise. However, even after removing Rin from the village, he still visited from time to time because he had agreed to a request from Saiai to train her in some of his techniques like his Poison Claw and Poison Whip, though she had to take precautions to prevent her dad from finding out. As the years passed, her training never wavered and she eventually mastered her demonic energy, spiritual powers, swords (Mondai, Jikan, and her priestess' sword, Shinseina Kiba), and bow (Kiba Yumi). She even mastered her weapons after they were reforged with her own fangs.

****During Saiai's time growing up, Miroku and Sango's children were also growing up. They had been trained not only as demon slayers, but also in the ways of the priesthood. Each was very talented with their weapon and each had immense spiritual powers, though they did not come close to those of Sai. They formed a strong friendship with Sai and even considered her like another sister. Though she was the youngest of the group by almost 2 years, she was by far the most powerful.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

5 years later

Today was Sai's 15th birthday. She was finally being given full standing as a priestess. Her mother was conducting the ceremony. Sai didn't usually have patience for such things, but this was an exception. She liked this ceremony because everyone she cared about was there. Her mom and dad, Aunt Sango and Uncle Miroku, her crush Kaze, and her two best friends in the world, the promiscuous twins, Umi and Nami. Kaze was 17 and had jet black hair. He looked a lot like his uncle Kohaku had, when he was that age, he even had the same hair style. The only difference was that Kaze had his father's eyes. Nami and Umi heavily resembled their mother. Their features were almost identical to hers except for the fact that they had also inherited their father's eyes. The girls also took after their mother in makeup as well. Nami used blue eye shadow and Umi used purple, as opposed to their mother's pink. The rest of the village was at the ceremony too in order to see the induction of their new priestess. During the ceremony, she was presented with her official kimono as a priestess and given her priestess' bow and sword back which had now been imbued with new enchantments by her mother. Everyone looked on at her. They were all so proud, especially her parents. This was sure to make Kaze hers. She wanted him to make the first move, but was starting to lose patience. She'd give him a few more weeks, but then she would have to make a move. The ceremony ended with a procession to the village shrine led by her parents, who had become the de facto leaders of the village since Kaede's death. After that the ceremony ended and most of the crowd dispersed. Only her parents and Sango and Miroku's family stayed behind. They all congratulated her personally. Even Kaze did it. She got really nervous, like always, when she was around him.

"Dammit," she thought, "I'm a powerful half-demon priestess and I can't even tell a boy how I feel! This is ridiculous!"

Eventually they all headed home. Her mom had prepared a really nice dinner for all of them.

"Good job Sai. You earned that honor out there." Her mother said, beaming at her.

"Thanks mom." She said shyly.

"Your mom's right," Inuyasha interjected, "you trained hard to get where you are, you deserve a little praise."

"Thanks dad," she said.

"Wow," Sai thought to herself, "they really are proud of me. Dad never says stuff like that."

They had dinner and then went to bed. She needed the rest. Tomorrow, her dad was taking her on a demon hunt. They were going after a powerful demon that had been attacking livestock a few villages over. It was her new responsibility after all. Her mother was going to be busy helping a man who had been seriously injured by a bear in the forest a few days ago and since she was now an official priestess, it was her job to help protect this region. She was looking forward to it. Her dad told her that he was going to leave it up to her how to deal with the demon and that he would only step in if necessary. She had to impress him or else she feared that he wouldn't take her next time.

After Sai fell asleep, her parents stayed up discussing the upcoming day.

"Are you sure it's a good idea to let her go on such a dangerous hunt?" Kagome asked, worried about her daughter.

"Yeah. I have faith in her. She's strong." Inuyasha replied, trying to keep his own worry out of his voice. "Besides, I'll be there if anything happens."

"Okay, just keep her safe." Kagome pleaded.

"Of course. She's my daughter too you know. We'll be fine."

"Alright. Well I guess we should get to bed too. We've all got big days coming up for us."

Inuyasha agreed and they both climbed into bed.

The next morning, Inuyasha and Saiai got up bright and early. Inuyasha strapped on Tetsusaiga and Sai crossed Mondai and Jikan across her back. The enchantments on her priestess weapons allowed her to summon them from thin air at any time. It was a handy trick and meant she didn't have to carry as much.

"You ready?" Her father asked her.

"I was born ready." Sai replied with the sly smile that only she could perfect. Her pure white fangs shined in the sunlight. It was only at that point that he realized how beautiful his daughter really was, even in battle gear. She would be a great catch for whoever won her heart, if he approved of him, that is.

They set off at a fast pace, even for them. Both of them wanted to be home for dinner and since Inuyasha didn't have Miroku slowing him down, this would take a lot less time than usual. They arrived after only about 2 hours of running. The demon was resting, probably sleeping off his last meal of village livestock.

"Alright. I'm going to wake him up." Her dad said, "I want to see what you can really do."

"K dad. Just wake him up already." Sai replied, desperately wanting to start the battle.

Her dad turned to the sleeping demon.

"Hey you!" Her dad yelled at the sleeping demon, "Wake the hell up dammit!"

The demon stirred and began to rise.

"Who dares to disturb my slumber?" It bellowed. The demon was huge. She could have fit five houses into the thing. It looked to be made of rock. She guessed that it was a relatively small mountain demon that had been driven out of its territory.

"I do!" Sai yelled at the demon, drawing her swords.

"Ha! A mere half-breed girl? What can you do to me?"

"Oh you did NOT just call me a half-breed!" She growled baring her fangs. She moved like a blur, jumped into the air, and was at the demon's head within a fraction of a second. Her kick slammed the demon right between the eyes. She flipped off of the demon, gracefully flying through the air, her black hair flowing freely in the air and landed lightly on her feet. The mountain demon stumbled, groaned, and fell to the ground hard making the earth shake beneath their feet.

"Ha. Didn't even know what hit him." Her father muttered under his breath approvingly. This made Sai smile. She was doing well.

"Get up you bastard!" Sai yelled at the beast.

It did and tried to attack her. She was faster and had her swords moving before the demon knew what was happening.

"DRAGON RIFT!" She roared.

Green light shot from her swords that she had slashed in a giant "X". It seemed like space and time themselves were being altered by this attack. The light hit the demon and a blinding flash ensued. A roar of pain and surprise was heard, but that and the light quickly disappeared. The demon was gone. It was completely destroyed by the attack, but so was a large swath of the woods behind where the demon had been standing.

"I think I went a little overboard on that one." She said laughing to herself.

"Yeah, no kidding." Her dad said. "Good job out there. You handled a strong demon and you did it with style and speed."

"And without your help." Sai interjected putting away her swords. This made her dad smile.

"Let's head home, Sai." He said, "Your mom will worry if we don't get back soon."

"Yeah you're right. Let's go."

They began running back to their village. Sai had killed her first big demon and without any help either. She couldn't help, but be a little proud of herself.

"If only Kaze had been there to see that." She thought to herself.

They arrived home just as the sun was about to start setting.

"Hey mom, we're back!" Sai yelled.

"Oh good, I was starting to worry." She said, walking out to greet us. "So how'd it go."

"She did great." Her father answered, "Wiped the demon off the face of the earth. Thing didn't even know what hit him." Sai beamed at the praise she was getting from her dad. He didn't give it much, so this was special and she was going to hold onto it for awhile.

"Great job, honey!" Her mom said, "I bet you're hungry. C'mon, dinner is almost ready!" They ate dinner together as a family. Sai had never felt so powerful, never felt more safe. That was before the dark days, before the demon purges.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

2 months later

Sai was cleaning the shrine with her mother when the smell hit her. The smell of fire and blood. A moment later, her dad burst through the door screaming to ring the alarm. She moved quickly towards the bell at the top of the shrine and began ringing it as fast and as loud as she could. They had known that it was only a matter of time before the purges came to their village.

It all started a little over a month ago. A new emperor had taken power and had started a massive demon purge. Thousands of soldiers were moving from village to village slaughtering demons and any people that had ever had any dealings with demons. For her, that included her entire village. She and her family had, inadvertently, damned an entire village.

Everyone began arming themselves to fight. Of course, they weren't actually going to fight. They were going run away and hide themselves. The only people that were going to fight were her and her father. They were the only ones that wouldn't be killed the instant the battle started. Sai and Inuyasha had bought everyone a little time. Their keen sense of smell gave them advanced warning. Both of them quickly went and prepared for battle themselves and made sure that all of the villagers had made it out. The last to leave was her mother.

"Kagome," her father said to her, "you be careful, alright. Make sure you're safe and then wait until we've driven them all off. Don't expose yourself for any reason, they won't hesitate to kill you and the villagers need you to lead them."

"Not to mention the fact that we need you to stay alive!" Sai interjected.

"I know Sai, I know. I'll stay back." She said bringing both of them into an embrace, "I love you both. You be careful and make it back to me, okay?"

"Sure thing, mom." Sai said.

"Alright well, you better get going." She said.

Inuyasha's eyes gazed lovingly into Kagome's. Sai thought it was like he was memorizing every feature of her face. The gaze wasn't very long, but it said everything that needed to be said. Kagome nodded at him and he nodded back.

"Sai," he said, turning to her, "let's go."

They set off to meet the soldiers that were marching on their village and met them just outside the outskirts of the village. The soldiers stopped and Sai and her father drew their swords.

"Turn back now and keep your lives!" Inuyasha yelled at the men.

Their general ride to the front, laughing.

"We will do no such thing, vile demon!" He yelled back, raising his sword. "Men! ATTACK!"

"Hmph, it's your life." Inuyasha muttered under his breath. Then he turned to her and yelled, "Don't hold back!"

Sai smiled wickedly, "Not in my nature!" She yelled back.

"DRAGON RIFT!" She roared.

"WIND SCAR!" Her father roared alongside her. When the light faded and the dust settled, the general was nothing but a fine spray of blood floating in the air, along with about 1500 of his men. The look of fear was plain on the remaining 3000 men, but they charged anyway. Both father and daughter growled in frustration.

"DRAGON WAVE!"

"ADAMANT BARRAGE!"

"DRAGON SCAR!"

"WIND SCAR!"

Inuyasha and Sai were about to charge headlong into the fray until they heard a familiar voice cry out, "DRAGON STRIKE!"

Green light exploded from the sky. The ground and men standing on it alike seemed to dissolve beneath its power. Sesshomaru had arrived. But they didn't have any time to worry about family greetings. At some point in the battle, the soldiers had managed to set the village on fire.

****"Sai!" Inuyasha yelled, "Use Shinseina Kiba to create a purifying wind! That should put out the flames before they destroy any more of the village. Sai nodded and immediately summoned her priestess blade and waved it in a circle above her head. This created a purifying wind. The technique was normally used to slay airborne demons, but it should work to put out a fire. It did, but not before most of the village had burned down.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

The next day, all of the villagers were in shock. They were alive, but they no longer had homes. Inuyasha was talking to Sesshomaru on the outskirts of the village.

"Thank you Sesshomaru." Inuyasha said, "We could have handled it ourselves, but your help was appreciated."

"Hmph." Sesshomaru said, "I didn't come for you. I came because Rin told me that your village was important to her."

"I see. Regardless, I'm grateful." Was his only response.

"What? No snide remarks?" Sesshomaru asked, "You've changed, little brother."

Inuyasha laughed, "Having a child will do that to you Sesshomaru."

"Hmm," Sesshomaru said thoughtfully, "We shall see." Sesshomaru smiled slightly and Inuyasha caught his meaning.

"Sesshomaru, Rin is pregnant isn't she?"

"Yes." Was his only response.

Inuyasha wanted to give him some kind grief about how he had always hated humans, but he held back and just smiled. Sesshomaru quickly changed the subject.

"Your village has been destroyed. If the people so desire, they may come and live at my castle. At least until the present turmoil has been dealt with."

"Thank you," Inuyasha replied, unable to hide the surprise in his voice, "I'll tell them."

"Good." And with that, Sesshomaru left.

Inuyasha left to find his family. It didn't take long to sniff them out. Sai had already found Kagome. She was with Miroku and Sango along with their whole family. They were talking about how Kohaku was likely dealing with the same thing at the demon slayer village that he had set up 3 years ago since they used good demons like Kirara to fight evil ones. The purge, though, didn't make the distinction between good and evil and simply killed indiscriminately. Inuyasha walked up to the group.

"Everyone alright?" He asked.

Kagome was the first to answer, "Yes. We're all fine here."

"Good. Gather the villagers together. We're leaving this place."

"What? Why?" Kagome asked, clearly confused.

"Sesshomaru offered to take the villagers into his castle for protection." Inuyasha told her.

"Wow. That's unexpected news. Rin must be really working on him." Kagome said.

"Yeah, no kidding. Rin's pregnant with Sesshomaru's child."

"You're kidding!" Kagome said incredulously.

"No, it's true, but that's not important right now. Get the villagers together and let's move out." He told her, "If we start now, we can make it to the castle in 5 days time."

"Okay, I'll spread the word." Kagome said.

Within the hour, they were on the move to Sesshomaru's castle.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

3 weeks later

"Ughhh" Nami groaned, "This is terrible."

"I know!" Her twin sister, Umi, agreed, "We've been stuck in this castle for over 2 weeks and I haven't seen a single cute guy!"

"Will you two shut up!" Sai snapped. She'd been listening to them complain about the lack of cute guys for the past few hours and had finally lost her patience. "Your constant whining isn't going to make any appear out of thin air!"

Umi and Nami looked hurt.

"Look, I'm sorry." Sai followed quickly, realizing how harsh her tone was, "I don't like being cooped up in here either and it's making me... Irritable..."

"You can say that again." Umi said and all three of them laughed. None of them could stay mad at another for long. They were too close for that.

"I just can't stand staying in this damn castle and not doing anything!" Sai said, frustration surfacing again, "We should be out there fighting back!"

"Well, maybe we should just go then." Nami said.

"Yeah, nothing is stopping us from going and avenging our village." Umi agreed.

"Um, I think you're forgetting about our parents." Sai reminded them, "They'd never let us do something like that."

"Oh yeah." The twins said in dejected unison.

"Wait!" Nami said, suddenly excited, "You could pass it off by saying that it's your duty as a priestess, or something, and that we were going as your personal guards."

"Yeah! That could work!" Umi agreed, "It would make sense since you're a great priestess that's supposed to protect this land and we're trained demon slayers."

Sai had to admit, it was the best plan they had so far.

"Alright, we'll try it, but I think we... Um... Should... Uh... bring Kaze along too." Sai said, her face turning red.

"Ohh..." Nami said smiling, "Sai wants to get with our little brother Umi."

"And what better way that through a death defying quest." Umi agreed.

"Yeah, so what!" Sai said defensively, "You guys already knew that!"

"We're just messing with you Sai!" Nami laughed, "We were going to ask Kaze to come along for that reason anyway."

"Thanks guys." Sai said blushing. "Alright, get your stuff together. I'll go talk to my parents and you talk to yours."

"Sounds good." Umi agreed.

Sai sniffed out her parents pretty quickly. It wasn't that hard even with all of the conflicting smells in the air. She knew their scent better than anyone's.

"Oh Sai, there you are!" Her mother called out as she approached, "I wanted to talk to you."

"Huh?" Sai responded, "What about?"

"Look," her mother began, "your dad and I have been talking and we know how you've been suffering caged up in this castle. We realize that you want to take action, so we talked with Miroku and Sango. You and their children are free to leave if you so desire, as long as you stay together."

Sai didn't know what to say. She hadn't expected this. If she was honest, she thought she was going to have to fight to get her parents' permission. It made her happy that her parents knew her well enough and trusted her enough to give it to her on their own.

"Thanks mom." She said after a few moments. It was all she knew to say.

"Thank your father." Her mother said, motioning towards her dad, "He's the one who suggested this."

She was speechless once again. All she did was run over and hug him.

"Thanks dad." She finally got out.

"Don't worry about it." He said, feigning nonchalance, "I know how I feel being stuck in here, so I knew it would be ten times worse for you. Just be careful out there alright."

"We will dad." She assured her father.

"Alright. You guys can start out in the morning. Spend at least one more night with your parents" her mother told her.

"Okay mom."

That night passed too quickly for Sai. She didn't know when she went to sleep if she was going to be ready to leave her parents the following morning. Eventually she decided that she would figure that out when morning came and she drifted off to sleep.

"Are you sure we're making the right decision?" Kagome asked, looking over her daughter's sleeping form.

"Yeah," Inuyasha said confidently, "Most of our group was that young when we set off and they're stronger than we were then."

"That's true, but I still worry." Kagome said.

"And you should," he agreed, "you're her mother. Now let's get some sleep so we can see them off in the morning."

The next morning, Sai awoke and immediately started getting ready. There were no longer any doubts in her mind, she was ready to go. She ate breakfast with her parents before they said their tearful goodbyes. Then she met up with Nami, Umi, and Kaze, who were waiting at the gates.

"Well look who finally decided to show up." Kaze called out smiling.

"Shut up Kaze." Sai called back, jokingly.

"Hey guys," Nami broke in, "let's get going."

"Definitely." Sai agreed.

The gates opened and they walked out into their quest. They only had a vague idea of what they were trying to do, but it was enough to hang onto. They were going to end the purges.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

"Alright," Sai said once the gate had closed behind them, "Where do we go from here?"

"Well, this is one of the few demonic strongholds left in the country," Kaze pointed out, "so I suggest we try and find some allies."

"He's right." Nami agreed, "The four of us, strong as we may be, aren't going to make much of a difference against an entire empire."

"But where are we going to find anyone willing to help us?" Umi asked.

This made everyone silent. She was right. The empire, new as it was, was brutal and had a firm hold on power. Not many would be willing to fight against it, especially not against the purges. Opposition to that tended to disappear.

"Well," Sai finally said, "we aren't going to find any just by sitting here. I think we should start moving from village to village, helping where we can. If we come across someone that would be willing to join us, then we will ask them to travel with us."

"That's a good idea." Kaze agreed. "So where to first?"

"Shouldn't we head toward the capital?" Umi asked.

"Yeah, if we want to stop these purges, then we're going to have to go there." Nami pointed out.

"Very true," Sai said, "but we don't have the numbers or the strength to move on the capital yet."

Kaze picked up after her, "We should head away from the capital and gather as much support as possible and then move in on the empire."

"Alright, sounds good." Umi said, "Let's get going."

They began traveling West, away from the castle. It wasn't long before they hit their first village. It was a burned out husk, just like their village. Even in a resistance stronghold, people still weren't safe from the hordes of bloodthirsty soldiers.

"Damn!" Sai cursed, "The smell of blood is still strong here. This didn't happen all that long ago, maybe only a few days ago..."

"Let's keep moving Sai." Nami said walking up behind her, "There's nothing we can do here."

Sai agreed and they continued onward.

They camped that night under the stars. It was warm and it felt nice to be with her friends, though she did miss her parents. Nami had the first watch, then it was Kaze, then it was Sai, and Umi had the last round. It was an uneventful night, as expected for the region that they were in, but they knew that they had to start getting used to spending their nights like this.

The next morning, they started their journey again. Conversation was lively. Anyone passing by, during peaceful times, would have thought that they were just normal kids traveling back to their village. Normal except for the weapons that they were carrying on their backs. Nami carried a Hiraikotsu, just like her mother had during her demon slaying days, and a katana. Umi carried twin katanas and had an array of throwing knives, with which she was deadly efficient. Kaze carried a large chain scythe, similar to the one used by his uncle Kohaku, and a katana. All three of the siblings had daggers hidden in their sleeves that they could spring at a moments notice and carried an array of sacred sutras like the ones their father had used in battle. Sai, of course, had the most powerful weapons of the group with her 2 demon swords, priestess blade, and priestess bow, not to mention her claws, fangs, and superhuman senses and abilities. They were the equivalent of a small army in battle, but not even they could challenge the empire without help.

It wasn't long before Sai caught the scent of blood in the air. The smell was fresh and growing. Something was happening that very moment.

"We need to go now!" Sai cried to her group.

"What is it Sai?" Kaze asked her, sensing her urgency.

"There's a slaughter going on." Was her only reply. And with that they set off running towards the scent. Sai was a great deal faster than her companions, even though they were extremely fast for humans, so she had to modulate her pace. She couldn't very well run into this blind and alone.

"I'm picking up a strong demonic aura." Umi called to Sai.

"Yeah, I'm feeling it too." Sai called back to her.

"We'd better hurry." Kaze said.

It didn't take them long to reach the village. The attack was still going. A band of about 200 soldiers was attacking a village, however two men, clearly half-demons, were holding them back. It was clear though that they wouldn't hold much longer. Sai sprang into action, jumping high into the air and drawing her swords.

"DRAGON SCAR!" She cried as she fell upon the men. The soldiers immediately in front of the two half-demons were ripped to shreds. The soldiers hesitated.

"You boys looked like you could use some help." Sai said as her friends joined them in the center of the circle.

"Ha. You can say that again." Said one.

"Don't know who you kids are, but we appreciate the help." The other continued.

"No problem." Nami said cheerfully, "We don't mind helping out a couple of cute guys." She winked at the two.

"Not now, Nami." Kaze sighed.

"Enough talk!" Cried one of the soldiers, apparently the commander, "Men! Remove these blemishes from the earth!"

"They never learn." Sai said under her breath. Sai and the rest of the encircled group made the first move. With blades drawn, they rushed into the circle.

The battle was over in minutes. All 200 men laid dead on the ground and there wasn't a scratch on Sai or any of her companions. The two half-demons they rescued, however, were badly wounded. Sai used her training as a priestess and immediately began to treat their wounds.

"Thank you," one of them said through gritted teeth, trying not cry out from the pain. "If you hadn't come when you did, we wouldn't have made it out of there alive."

Sai looked up at the man. She noticed that he and the other man were only about Kaze's age. They had bright orange hair, pointed ears, and were very well muscled. During the battle, she had noted both of them fought without weapons, but with fire emanating from their hands.

"Yeah no problem. We'll take every chance we can get to kill those bastards." She said, cracking a friendly smile at the half-demon. "You two fought well out there."

"Thanks, but I think you guys are in a different league altogether." Replied the other, probably his brother due to the similarity of their features. Sai laughed at this comment.

"Maybe so. That's beside the point, though. I want to know what happened here."

The two proceeded to tell how their village had been attacked. Most of the people had managed to escape, but some weren't so lucky. That explained the smell of blood that Sai had picked up. The demonic aura came from the two half-demons, who turned out to be half phoenix demon. The soldiers had attacked the village not expecting much resistance. Next time, Sai and her group probably wouldn't be so lucky. Word would spread of how there was a group of resistance fighters roaming the country and the number of soldiers would undoubtedly increase. They would have to be more careful.

Sai finished patching up the two and stood up.

"You two need any more help?" Kaze asked.

"We could really use some help finding the villagers that made it out alive. They scattered everywhere when the attack came."

"That sounds like a job for you Sai." Nami said, "Your nose should be able to track them down easily."

"Meanwhile," Umi said, her lips forming a devilish smile, "we will... see to these two good looking guys right here."

The two girls quickly grabbed hold of the guys' hands and almost dragged them to the house they had identified as theirs, giggling the entire way. Kaze sighed.

"They never change." He said.

"No," Sai laughed, "no they don't."

Kaze and Sai walked off together into the woods in order to find the villagers hiding there. Sai could have found them all pretty quickly. It wasn't hard to distinguish human scent from woodland scents, but she wanted to spend some time alone with Kaze. They hadn't had the chance to just talk in a while, but now that she had him alone, she had no idea what to say.

"Hey Sai." Kaze said.

"What?" Sai said, her train of thought interrupted.

"You were great out there you know." He began, "During the battle, I mean."

"Oh," Sai said blushing lightly, "thanks. You too Kaze."

"No I mean it." He continued, "You were graceful. It's like you just flowed with your swords. You were almost dancing. It was kinda... Beautiful."

Sai blushed even harder, her face turning red. She turned away acting as if she was trying to find the scent, though she knew exactly where it led. Kaze was complimenting her. He'd even said she'd looked beautiful and she had no idea what to say.

"Oh really?" She said after a few moments, "You really think so?"

"Yeah, of course." He said, laughing, "I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it."

"Thanks Kaze."

"No problem. I mean, a girl that works as hard as you deserves some praise."

All Sai knew to do was laugh. She had no idea what else to say, so she just started following the scent to the villagers. It didn't take long to come across them. They had mostly regrouped in a small clearing. Sai and Kaze gathered them together, told them that it was safe, and led them back to the village. The two brothers along with Nami and Umi were waiting for them just outside the village.

"Hey!" One called out happily, "You found them."

"Of course," Kaze called back, "Sai's got the best nose in the country." This made her blush again.

"Well I'm glad she does, otherwise we'd still probably be looking." Said the other brother to us after we had walked up to them.

"Hey," Kaze started, "We never got your names."

"Oh! We did!" Umi said excitedly.

"His name," Nami said, pointing to the older looking of the two, "is Akage. And his name," she continued pointing to the younger brother, "is Kasai."

"Good to know." Kaze said, committing the names to memory.

"Is there anything else we can help you with?" Sai asked.

"I'm guessing you guys can't stay..." Akage said.

"No we've got to keep moving." Kaze replied.

"Damn." Akage cursed, "We got off easy this time, but next time, they'll send more and we won't have help."

"They'll wipe us off the map." Kasai picked up, "It's not like they don't know where to find us."

"I might be able to help with that actually." Sai said. "I can hide you from the empire."

"Sai, not that I don't respect your power, but how do you plan to do that?" Umi questioned.

"Just listen and I'll tell you." Sai said, a little annoyed. She proceeded to instruct Nami, Umi, and Kaze to put a sutra on the door of every house in the village. Once they were finished, Sai summoned her bow and began to draw a huge circle with it in the ground around the village. After she finished it, Sai moved to the center of the circle, dismissing the bow. When she was in the center, she bowed her head and clasped her hands together as if she was in prayer. She then began muttering an incantation. As she did, a blue shell began to erect itself over the village. After a few more seconds, it made a hemisphere over the village and then slowly dissipated.

"Ok," Sai said, "that should hide you from all those soldiers and any roaming demons. I've gotta warn you, though. Anyone with a good amount of spiritual energy will sense the barrier and will know something's here."

"We don't get many of those around here." Akage said, "Thank you."

"No problem." Sai said, smiling.

"Hey, it's getting late." Kasai pointed out. He was right. Sai hadn't realized how low the sun had gotten. It wouldn't be long before night fell. "How about you stay with us for the night and set out in the morning."

"I like that idea." Nami said. Umi agreed with her.

"Thank you guys." Kaze said. "Just point us to where we're staying."

They led Sai and her companions to the largest house in the village. The owners had been some of the few killed in the attack. Sai was glad to not have to sleep outside that night. She was exhausted. That spell had taken a lot out of her and she fell asleep almost immediately.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Morning dawned too soon the next day. Sai and her friends were preparing their equipment and supplies. When they were about ready to leave, Akage walked into the house.

"You guys need another person in your group?" He asked. This was met with surprised looks all around.

"You want to come with us?" Kaze asked, incredulously.

"Yeah. I mean, your spell will keep the villagers safe and, as you saw yesterday, even if I stayed, I wouldn't be much help if the village was attacked. I just feel like I would be more help to them if I tried to stop the root of the problem." Akage explained, "Plus Kasai has already told me that he'll stay behind to lead the people."

"Alright, well, you're welcome to come with us. We're going to need all the help we can get, but I warn you, this will be dangerous." Kaze told him.

"I know and I'm willing to accept that." Akage said, his face not showing a hint of doubt in what he was saying.

"Well then, I guess introductions are in order." Kaze said, shaking hands with Akage. They all introduced themselves and explained their individual talents. It turned out that Akage could not only control fire, but could use lightning and summon creature made of fire.

"Do you have your stuff ready to go?" Sai asked him.

"Yeah. I've got a bag sitting outside the door." He responded.

"Good. Then let's get going."

And with that they headed out from the village. Akage had already said his goodbyes. He'd assumed, correctly, that the group would take him in. Sai couldn't believe their luck. In the first populated village that they had visited, they found a powerful ally that was willing to travel with them. The weather that day, however, was terrible. It was pouring down rain. Sai wasn't worried about that though. She was actually really happy. Kaze had offered to walk beside her under his umbrella. That meant he was interested in her and that put her on cloud nine. She had no idea what to say, as usual, so she just walked beside him in silence. That was the way Kaze preferred it too. He just wanted to enjoy her company. They walked like that for a few hours before the rain finally stopped and the sun poked through. It was another hour before they finally decided to take a break. They sat down on a hillside that had already dried in the sun. Kaze and Akage agreed to go out and refill the water containers and left pretty quickly. After they were out of earshot, Nami and Umi turned to Sai.

"So..." They questioned.

"So... What?" Sai asked.

"Oh don't play dumb Sai!" Nami said, frustrated, "We aren't blind! We saw you and Kaze under the umbrella!"

"Oh you did, did you?" She said, blushing and twirling her hair nervously.

"Yes!" Umi yelled at her, "Now tell us what happened. We want to know how our girl is doing."

"Well, I mean, we didn't talk much." Sai admitted, "We just kinda walked together."

"Good." Umi said, "That's probably how Kaze wanted it to be."

"So how'd you feel?" Nami asked.

"What are you talking about? I loved it, of course! I had no idea that Kaze felt that way about me too."

"Are you blind?" Nami said, laughing, "Kaze may not be the best at expressing how he feels all the time, but he's felt that way for awhile."

"Really?" Sai asked. She'd had no idea. All this time that she'd spent so nervous around him when he'd felt the same way about her!

"What about you two?" Sai asked them, "How do feel about Akage?" Nami was the one to blush at that one.

"He's not really my type." She said.

"Oh come on sis!" Umi said, turning on her sister, "You obviously like him. It's written all over your face."

"You can't lie to us." Sai said, smiling at her friend.

"Damn." Nami cursed, "Alright fine, I like him. He's nice and attractive. What's so bad about that?"

"Ha. Nothing!" Sai said, "I just didn't take you for one that was going to settle down anytime soon."

"Who said anything about that?" Nami said, winking.

"That's my sister!" Umi said.

They spent a few more minutes talking before the two guys came back. The two could tell that the girls had been talking about them from the silence that fell over the group when they came back into earshot, but they didn't mention it. It wasn't long before they were on their way again. The weather was significantly better and it turned out to be a beautiful day, so they were able to travel a great distance. They stopped at a village as the sun began to set and looked for accommodations for the night. Sai sniffed out an inn on the eastern side of the village and led the group to it. The group entered the inn and Kaze went to purchase a room for the night for them all.

"Excuse me," he began, getting the man's attention, "do you have any rooms available?"

"Hmm?" He said, not looking up.

"Rooms?" Kaze repeated, a little annoyed. The man looked up and a look of recognition immediately crossed his face.

"It's you!" He yelled surprised, "you're the group trying to bring down the empire!"

"Hey!" Kaze whispered urgently, "Don't say that too loud!"

"Have no fear!" The innkeeper assured, "We are a village that opposes the empire, though we do it quietly enough. I heard about you from a traveler that passed through earlier today. He said you saved a village from being slaughtered by 200 men."

"Yes." Akage spoke up, "That was my village. They fought with such ferocity that I was moved to join them."

"I see." The man said, nodding, "Well, I can't have heroes paying for rooms. You will stay here free for tonight!"

"What? Are you sure about that?" Kaze asked, incredulously.

"Oh absolutely. When you take down the empire, imagine how much business I'll get when I say the saviors of the country stayed in my inn!" The man explained.

"Alright, if you're sure about it..." Kaze said, a little uncomfortable at taking the room for free. His father would have taken it in a heartbeat, but he was more like his mother. The innkeeper led the group to their room, which happened to be the nicest room in the inn, making Kaze feel even worse. It wasn't long before their dinner arrived.

"Kaze don't worry about it." Umi said, reassuring her brother.

"Yeah," Nami picked up, "the man said that he wanted to do this."

"I know. I just feel like we're stealing from him." Kaze said.

"Just think of it as receiving a gift."

Sai said, stuffing food into her mouth.

"Now eat your food or I'll eat it for you." Akage said smiling. This made everyone laugh. They continued on like that until their food was almost done. Suddenly the group heard heavy footsteps moving quickly towards their room. A man crashed through the door. He was older and looked ragged. His eyes searched over the room until they came upon Sai. When his gaze met hers, he gasped.

"It's you!" He yelled, "The one! The one that will save us all!"

"What?" Sai asked, getting angry at this man, "Who the hell are you old man and why did you barge in on us?"

"I am no one." He said, his eyes darting nervously around the room, "But you! You can save everyone!"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Sai asked the crazy old geezer.

"You are the only one that can defeat the emperor!" He yelled. This stunned everyone into silence. The guy had to be crazy.

"What do you mean, 'I'm the only one.'" Sai asked him after a moment.

"You are the only one that can defeat him! But not even you, the great priestess of the two realms, can do it alone! You must have the item!" He yelled.

"You better tell me what item you're talking about and this better be the truth." Sai said, grabbing the man and slamming him into the wall, "Or I'll kill you."

"No need for that." He laughed nervously, "You need the one pure spark of man's heart, the embodiment of love."

"Stop speaking in riddles old man!" Akage yelled from behind Sai.

"Tell us where we can find this thing and what we need to do to get it!" Nami continued.

"I don't know!" The old man yelled, "That's all the light told me!"

"What damn light?!" Sai demanded. At that instant, a blinding light shot from the man, making all of them shield their eyes. When the light dissipated the man was gone. In his place was a strange rune burned into the wall. It looked like the character for love, but it had wavy lines emanating from it that connected to a circle that surrounded the entire thing.

"What the hell just happened?" Umi asked.

"I'm not sure," Sai said, "but I'm pretty sure that this symbol has something to do with it."

"You think that we can trust that old man Sai?" Nami asked.

"Well right now, I don't think that we have much choice. This is the only lead we have on how to beat the empire." Sai responded.

"It's not that much of a lead, though." Akage said, "All got is a riddle that we have no idea how to go about solving."

"He's right." Kaze said, "We have no idea what this 'embodiment of love' is or where to look for it."

"Dammit!" Sai cried in frustration, "What the hell is going on?!"

"Hey," Kaze said, walking over to her and putting his arm around her, "it's gonna be alright. We'll figure this out. What we should take from this is that the empire isn't unbeatable. We can win."

"Thanks Kaze." She said smiling. The group spent a good bit of the rest of the night pondering what the old man said, what the light was, and what the symbol meant. However, after a few hours of not getting anywhere, they agreed that it would be best to get some sleep. They would set out again in the morning.

The sun rose on a calm town, but a restless group of travelers. Neither Sai not any of her companions had gotten much sleep the night before. The events were still too fresh in their minds. Nonetheless, they set out early, more confused than ever.

The group took a break from walking after a few hours of walking, mostly in silence. Once everyone had sat down, Sai got up and started walking towards the nearby woods.

"Sai!" Kaze called out, "Sai! Where are you going?"

"To take out some frustration." Was her irritated reply. Kaze started to get up and follow, but Nami put her hand on his shoulder and shook her head,

"Give her some space." She said.

"You sure?" Kaze asked.

"Yeah." Nami said, chuckling, "I'm sure."

"Dammit!" She screamed at the sky while slashing down a tree with her sword, "Why give me a riddle?! I need answers!" She let loose a Dragon Wave, creating a swath of destruction in front of her. Suddenly the trees rustled and a group of demons emerged into the clearing she had created.

"Why have you destroyed our home?" The front one cried.

"Let's just say I'm having a really bad day." Sai said sarcastically.

"Hmph!" The demon said, "You shall die for your impudence!"

"Just try it." Sai growled, threateningly, "It'll give me a chance to kill something."

The demons growled and charged at her. Sai smiled wickedly.

"It's your life." Sai muttered. She moved faster than the demons could register. They looked all around trying to find her.

"Up here you bastards!" She called from the sky as she fell upon them. The look of fear on their faces pleased Sai, probably more than it should have. Her blades moved before the demons could react. The battle was over in seconds and the pieces of their bodies were scattered everywhere. She sheathed her blades and began walking back to where her friends were.

She exited the woods calmly, not drawing the groups attention until she sat down among them and grabbed some food.

"Sai!" Kaze said, concern thick in his voice, "You're covered in blood! What happened?"

"It's not mine, don't worry." She assured him, "Just a few demons that pushed their luck a little too far."

"Hmm." Kaze said, "So you're sure that you're alright?"

"Yeah," she lied, putting on a fake smile, "We should probably get going soon."

"Alright..." Kaze said, uncertain.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

It had been a few days since the strange events at the inn. Sai had returned to her normal self. Though she was still troubled by what the old man had said, she decided that it was best to move on. She thought that if they were meant to find out what the man had talked about, then they would, but if they weren't, then they wouldn't. The other option was that the man was crazy and involved with some strange demon and she shouldn't put any stock at all into what he said. At this point, it really didn't matter to her. She was going to take down the empire, whether she found this "embodiment of love" or not. It was a matter of pride for her now.

"You guys feel that?" Nami said, interrupting Sai's thoughts.

"Yeah." Kaze answered, "It was brief, but a strong demonic aura just passed over us."

"Any idea what it could be?" Sai asked.

"No idea." Kaze admitted, "But whatever it is, I don't think it's a good demon. Did you catch its scent?"

"No." Sai said, embarrassed. She'd been too wrapped up in her own thoughts. She hadn't even noticed the presence of a demonic aura.

"Damn." Kaze cursed.

"You want to try and find it?" Akage asked, "Something like that might know something."

"He might, but how would we go about finding him?" Umi asked, "If Sai didn't catch the scent, then how are we supposed to track him down?" This made Sai feel even worse about missing the scent. Her lack of attention could have cost them more than they could afford.

"It doesn't matter." Kaze said, noticing Sai's face, "We don't have time to chase every demon that we come across. There just isn't enough time for that. Instead, we should be focusing on getting to the next village and finding allies. We haven't come across a populated one in days. It's obvious that the empire is expanding its power, so we've got to respond and increase our own."

"Alright," Akage said, "Sai, can you pick up the scent of a village from here?" Sai sniffed the air looking for the tell tale scent of a village.

"There is one about a day's journey from here." She said. "I'm not sure how big it is, though, or even if it has people in it. I don't smell any smoke or blood, but we can't be sure of anything until we get there."

"Well, I don't think we have much choice, but to check it out." Nami pointed out, "We don't have anywhere else to go."

"Let's get moving then." Umi said in her typical cheery voice.

The group arrived at the village early the next day. It was populated, though it was fairly small. There had been no signs of the demonic aura that the group had sensed and they were starting to think that they had just been imagining things, especially since Sai hadn't caught anything. It wasn't long before the group caught the attention of the village leader. He came running out to greet them.

"Hello and welcome to our village." The man said when he reached the group.

"Thank you." Kaze began, "We're glad to see a village still standing. This is the first populated village that we've come across in days."

"I know." The man said, becoming serious, "It seems as though we're too small and insignificant to draw the attention of the empire."

"Well, I guess that's something to be glad about, right?" Nami said happily, "You're going to be safe!"

"I'm sad to say that that is not the case." The man said.

"What do you mean?" Sai asked.

"Since the empire has no plans of coming and wiping us out, an evil demon has been terrorizing us. It has been stealing our livestock and has even begun to demand our young women." The man explained.

"I see." Kaze said, pondering the situation. He turned to Akage. "Could that have been the demon we sensed on the road yesterday?"

"It's always possible." Akage told him, "Demons have mostly been in hiding recently. If they came across a place that was mostly being ignored by the empire, then it's likely that they would attack it." Kaze nodded and turned back to the village leader.

"Worry not, my good man." Kaze assured him, "We'll take care of this demon for you and, if we can, bring back the village women."

"That's wonderful!" The man said, "Please, rest from your travels here today and begin your search tomorrow."

"I'm okay with that." Umi chimed in.

"Me too." Nami agreed.

"Definitely." Akage said.

"Sai, are you okay with that?" Kaze asked.

"Yeah. I could use some time to relax." She was telling the truth. Sai hadn't slept in a real bed in days and was in desperate need of a bath.

"Alright. That settles it then." Kaze said, facing the village leader, "We'll take you up on your offer and begin our search tomorrow."

"Very good!" The man said happily, "I shall have your rooms prepared at once."

It wasn't long before the rooms were prepared and they were led to them. There was one for the guys and one for the girls. The rooms weren't much, but they were better than sleeping outside again. As soon as the group had settled into their rooms, Kaze left to ask around the village about the demon. Nami and Umi also left, probably to flirt with the guys in the village. Sai stayed behind in order to clean and sharpen her swords. It had been a while since she'd done so and they had started to smell heavily of blood. She pulled them out and found that the blades were also much duller than she had expected.

"Damn." She thought, "I need to take better care of these swords. Constant travel and fighting isn't good for them." She thought back to her angry time in the woods a few days earlier. "Cutting down trees with them probably didn't help either." She thought, laughing to herself. The she heard a knock on the door, interrupting her thoughts.

"Yeah?" She called out, "Who is it?"

"It's me." Akage said from behind the door, "Can I come in?"

"Yeah sure." Sai said, wondering what he wanted. "You alright?" She asked once he had closed the door behind him.

"Yeah, I just wanted to talk to you about something." He said.

"What about?"

"Um... I uh... I wanted to talk about Nami." Akage said, his face starting to turn red. Sai smiled.

"Oh. I see. You like her don't you?" Sai questioned.

"What? Uh... h-how did you know that?" Akage stammered.

"C'mon." Sai said, rolling her eyes, "It's pretty obvious. It's written all over your face."

"Fine, fine. You got me." Akage conceded, "I just don't know how to talk to her. She's always flirting with other guys and doesn't really seem to pay much attention to me."

"Trust me," Sai laughed, "that's a sign that she likes you too."

"What?" he said, stunned, "That doesn't make any sense."

"Teenage girls never make sense, Akage. That's just something that you've got to learn. We can be pretty strange." Sai admitted.

"Well, how do I impress her or get her to pay attention to me?" Akage asked desperately.

"Nami is a demon slayer. She values strength and she knows you have it. You're going to have to display it somehow. Just make sure that you respect hers." Sai warned, "She's proud and will hate it if you get in the way of her kill."

"You'll probably have to take down some powerful demon. It won't stop her from flirting, though." Sai said, thinking about her friend.

"What would it take to make her stop that?" Akage asked, hopefully.

"You'd probably have to marry the girl."

"I'm okay with that." Akage said, quickly.

"Good luck getting that girl to settle down." Sai laughed, "But hey, if anyone can do it, you can. She really likes you. More so than I've ever seen from her before."

"Really?"Akage asked.

"Yeah." Sai told him, "Now get out of here and get some rest or something. I need to finish my swords and get a bath." Akage thanked her and left pretty quickly after that.

"Damn. That guy's probably going to spend the rest of the day trying to figure out how to get Nami to marry him." She thought to herself, "Kinda hope he gets her, though. They'd be cute together." She sighed and went back to sharpening her blades and told a worker that walked by her room to prepare a bath for her.

Meanwhile, Kaze wasn't having much luck in the village. The villagers had never seen the demon and had no idea where it came from. This was going to prove to be a difficult hunt. The demon could obviously mask its demonic aura if it wanted to and was clearly hostile. Kaze figure that he wasn't going to find anything out from the villagers and decided to head back to the inn. What he really wanted to do was talk to Sai. She'd mostly returned to normal, but it was still clear to him that what the old man had said still bothered her. He hated that. The girl he loved shouldn't have to be bothered by the words of some senile old man. Plus they hadn't had any time alone in a long time. It wasn't that he didn't like having his sisters or Akage, who had essentially become his best friend in the short time that they had traveled together, but he wanted some time to speak freely with Sai.

It didn't take him long to get back to the inn. The village wasn't that big, after all. Kaze walked to Sai's door and knocked. No one answered. He knocked again, this time a bit harder. Still no answer.

"Did she go somewhere?" He wondered to himself. Kaze decided to check for himself. He opened the door and looked inside. There was no one inside, but he did hear humming coming from behind a door at the back of the room. He'd found her. Kaze walked to the door and opened it.

"Hey S-" His voice caught in his throat as he realized what he'd walked in on. Sai was naked and taking a bath. She looked up at him her eyes wide with surprise. Then she screamed.

"GET OUT!" She yelled at him, throwing a towel at his head. Kaze ducked and ran out of the room closing the door behind him. He continued all the way out into the hall.

"Dammit." He cursed at himself, "That did not go the way that I planned." Then he saw Akage racing down the hall.

"What's going on Kaze?" Akage asked, worry evident in his voice, "I heard Sai scream and came as fast as I could."

"Everything's... fine..." Kaze said, his face turning red, "Sort of..."

"What do you mean?"

"I.. uh... I walked in on Sai..." Kaze began, "taking a bath..." Akage roared with laughter.

"Oh look at you, you little pervert you!" He said, tears coming to his from how hard he was laughing, "Trying to help out the dog in the bath!"

"I didn't mean to!" Kaze yelled at him, "I didn't even know she was in there!"

"Of course you didn't." Akage said, still laughing, "C'mon, let's go back to our room. You don't want to still be around when she gets out." Kaze nodded and followed Akage back to their room. He thought back to the scene he had just left.

"Damn that girl is beautiful." He thought, sighing.

At the same time, Sai was still sitting in her bath. She didn't know whether to be angry, flattered, or maybe some of both. Then another thought occurred to her.

"Maybe I overreacted." Sai thought to herself, "He might not have even known that I was in here taking a bath." Now she felt bad. She realized that he'd probably just wanted to talk to her. They hadn't had much time to talk privately in recent days. She did know one thing, though. Kaze liked what he'd seen. She saw it in his eyes and could still smell the amount of pheromones that his body was producing. At least she could take solace in that. She smiled, sank further down into the water, and went back to relaxing.

When Sai finally finished her bath, she wrapped herself in a towel, and walked out into her room. She was met by the knowing stares and dubious smiles of Nami and Umi, who were sitting on the floor and had clearly been waiting for her to come out.

"Hey there Sai..." Umi said

"How's it goin'?" Nami asked, giggling.

"Did you enjoy your bath?" Umi followed. Sai sighed.

"Who told you?" She asked in a defeated voice.

"Akage." Nami said.

"Dammit." she sighed, "He knows too?"

"Yup." Umi said, clearly trying to hold back laughter.

"Who else knows?" Sai asked, getting dressed.

"Just us." Nami assured her, "So... did you like it?"

"What?!" Sai asked, her head bolting up in surprise and her face turning red, "Why would you even ask me that?"

"Cuz we know what the answer is." Umi giggled.

"A resounding yes!" Nami followed, dramatically.

"Alright fine." Sai gave in, "It wasn't the worst thing in the world."

"See there you go Sai!" Umi said, excitedly, "You're finally learning to accept your feelings!"

"Hey," Sai said, smiling sarcastically, "I think he enjoyed it just a little bit more than I did." This made all three of them roar with laughter. That night, they were just normal teenage girls gossiping about boys. They forgot all about demons and the empire. Sleep came easily that night and was better than any sleep they'd had in months.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

The next morning, all five of them prepared to go hunting for this demon and slay it. Sai was the last to leave her room. She walked out into the main room and saw Kaze. He was talking to the innkeeper. She coughed loudly and he turned his head toward her. When their eyes met, she smiled at him, winked, and then kept walking. She noticed that his face had turned bright red before she exited the inn into the bright morning sunlight. Sai had that boy right where she wanted him.

Sai joined the group waiting outside the inn. Nami and Umi were in battle gear and were analyzing their weapons, Akage was amusing himself with fire that he had summoned to his fingertips, and Sai was staring out at the woods. If anyone had asked, she would have told them that she was trying to catch the demon's scent or feel its demonic aura, but that wasn't strictly true. She was actually thinking back to her first hunt, the one her father had taken her on. She remembered the rush of battle. She remembered the thrill of victory. She remembered the feeling of safety she had felt afterwards. All of that was different now. She no longer felt any rush from battle because she was forced to do it so often. The thrill from victory was gone because she wasn't killing evil demons for the most part, she was killing people with families. They may have been evil people that wanted nothing more than to see her dead, but they still had people at home that loved them and would mourn their loss. Safety, though, was the thing she missed most. Sai had always felt so safe with her parents. Nothing could hurt them. She missed them terribly, but knew that if she ever wanted to feel safe again, then she would have to take down the empire and make the world safe.

"Sai!" Kaze called, breaking her train of thought, "You alright?"

"Uh," She began, trying to compose herself, "Yeah, of course. You ready to go?"

"Yeah. Let's get moving." Kaze said. With that they set off into the woods.

Kaze was leading them in the direction that the innkeeper had just told him of. Apparently, the innkeeper had noticed that each night that an attack from the demon occurred, a strange light would emanate from this direction. They decided that they had no choice, but to check it out. The woods they were traveling through were thick, though, much thicker than Sai had expected. Progress was slow and arduous.

"You know, I can cut all of this down with my Dragon Wave." Sai said, wrenching a thick branch away from her face.

"Probably not the best idea Sai." Akage called to her from the back of the group, "A show of power like that might scare the demon off. Since it can obviously hide its demonic aura, that would make finding it even harder."

"Akage's right." Nami said, "Showing your strength to a demon before battle is one of the worst things you can do when you're trying to slay one."

"I just want all these damn plants out of my way!" Sai yelled as she used her claws to shred a thicket of thorns and vines.

"Don't worry Sai." Umi said, "You won't have to deal with it much longer. We're getting close."

"How do you know? I don't smell anything." Sai questioned.

"Look up." Umi said, pointing. There were scratches in the bark high on the trees. Some of the branches were even broken off.

"Great." Sai said sarcastically, "So this demon doesn't give off a scent, can hide its aura, and lives in the tops of trees. Awesome."

"I think it'll be fun." Nami chimed in, "I mean, when was the last time you had the chance to track down a demon that was this hard to find." Sai rolled her eyes and kept walking. She wanted to be done with this thing, so that they could get back on the road.

"What's up with her?" Akage whispered to Nami.

"She probably wants to get this over with soon." Nami whispered back, "I mean, her time is tomorrow."

"You're kidding!" Akage whispered forcefully, "The time she becomes a mortal is tomorrow! Why did she come with us then? This could take more than one day!"

"Well, it's just not like Sai to back down from anything." Nami said about her friend, "She never has and never will. Plus, it's just one night during the new moon and she'll still have her powers as a priestess. Even without her demon powers, she's still pretty powerful."

"I guess you're right. I certainly wouldn't want to get in her way even if she was just a normal mortal." Akage joked.

"You can say that again." Nami laughed. They continued trudging through the woods in the direction that the innkeeper had given them for a few more hours until they came upon a clearing.

"Hey guys, we should probably rest here for a little bit." Kaze suggested.

"Good idea." Akage agreed. However, Sai did not approve.

"We're stopping already?" Sai asked.

"Yeah." Umi answered, "All of us are pretty tired. I know you could probably keep going, but we need to stick together." Sai knew she was right. She didn't like it, but she sat down to take a break with them. Nami checked how much water they had left.

"We're almost out of water. I'm going to go see if I can find some nearby." She announced and got up and walked off.

"I think I should go with her." Akage said quickly, getting up and racing after her. Sai looked back and forth from Sai to Kaze.

"I'm going to go do... something." She said and left quickly.

"What was that all about?" Sai asked.

"They probably wanted to give us time to talk." Kaze said laughing.

"Oh." Sai said, realizing that he was probably right.

"Hey Sai?" Kaze said.

"Yeah?

"I just wanted to say that I'm sorry. You know, about yesterday." Kaze said, blushing slightly.

"Don't worry about it. It's fine." Sai assured him.

"No it's not." Kaze said, running his hands through his hair, "I should have knocked first. I just wanted to talk to you."

"Like I said, don't worry about. It's okay." She paused a moment and began blushing at her own thoughts. "Did you... like it?"

"Like what?" Kaze asked, confused.

"Like... me. Did you like me?" She clarified, her face turning bright red, "What did you think?"

"Oh... um... well..." Kaze stammered.

"You know, don't even worry about it." Sai said, speaking quickly, "It was a dumb question anyway."

"No it wasn't." Kaze said, suddenly serious, "And the answer is yes. It thought that you were... are... the most beautiful thing I've seen." Sai's breath caught in her throat. Her heart was pounding and she was sure that anything with ears for miles could have heard it. She turned her head to face Kaze and barely saw it coming. His lips locked with hers as he embraced her. He was kissing her! It was the greatest rush of adrenaline she'd ever felt before. No battle could have compared to this. This was pure ecstasy to her. Kaze held her for a few more seconds before breaking away.

"So," Kaze said softly, smiling at her, "What did you think?" Sai's only response was to smile back and kiss him again. Then they heard three sets of hands start clapping from the woods.

"That's my little brother!" Umi called out walking back into the clearing.

"Nice work Sai!" Nami followed up, "Perfectly played! Couldn't have done it better myself."

"You two are cute together." Was all Akage said.

"How long were you guys spying on us?!" Sai demanded.

"The whole time." Nami said, throwing a bottle full of water at her, "We're good on water by the way." This made Umi and Akage laugh.

"Not cool guys." Kaze said, glaring at his sisters.

"Hey, you must have enjoyed it. You're still all over each other!" Umi pointed out. Sai and Kaze looked down and realized that they were still each other's embrace. They broke away quickly, their faces burning red.

"Aww! Why'd you tell them Umi?" Nami complained, jokingly.

"They would have figured out eventually." Umi said, waving her off.

"Whatever." Kaze said as he and Sai stood up, "Break over." The two stormed off together, a couple to the end. It made the other three giggle. Sai wanted to surprise them, shock them with something, and she knew just what to do. As the two of them nearly the edge of the clearing, the other three not far behind, Sai grabbed Kaze, spun him around, brought him in close, and kissed him passionately. Kaze was surprised and didn't know what was going on at first, but it didn't take him long before he realized what Sai was trying to do. Kaze did exactly what Sai wanted him to do. He was undoing her clothes, messing up her hair, and overall, making it as awkward as possible for the three onlookers.

"Oh come on Sai! Really?" Umi called out.

"Please Kaze stop! That's weird! You're our little brother and she's our best friend!" Nami continued. It took a few more moments to realize what it would take to make them stop.

"OKAY! WE'RE SORRY!" All three of them yelled in unison. Sai and Kaze broke away from each other at once.

"Thank you." The pair said tersely. Sai began fixing her clothes and hair, while Kaze did the same.

"Let's get going then." Kaze said, once they had finished, and the two walked off, hand-in-hand.

When night came, the group found another clearing and built a fire. Akage pulled food out that the village leader had given to him for their hunt. They had enough to last for three days. That night, all of them sat arrayed around the fire. Umi, Nami, and Akage were all pretty evenly spaced apart, but Sai was with Kaze. She was sitting, snuggled up next him in her mortal form with his arm around her. It just felt right at that point. Maybe it was the fact that human emotions intensified when she became a mortal, but she chose to think that it was because they were in love. In all honesty, it was probably the latter.

Conversation was good that night. Sai and Kaze had agreed to forgive the rest of them for spying on them since they had enjoyed their time "alone" together. The group even joked about it over dinner. Sai fell asleep in Kaze's arms, so the group agreed that Nami, Umi, and Akage would be the ones alternating for the watch that night. Kaze had no problems with that and it didn't take him long to fall asleep next to Sai. His last thought before drifting was that he could get used to this.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

The sun awoke Sai that morning. Her dog ears twitched in annoyance. She groaned loudly.

"Morning sleepy head." Kaze said smiling down on her.

"Huh?" She said, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. Kaze laughed.

"C'mon, get ready." He told her, "We'll be leaving soon."

"Couldn't you have woken me up earlier?" Sai asked, "Now I have to rush."

"I considered it, but you looked so peaceful. I couldn't interrupt that." Both of them laughed. Sai got up and proceeded to get dressed and strap on her weapons. The group started their search again and Nami and Umi quickly pulled Sai aside while Akage went to talk to Kaze.

"You two were SO cute together last night!" Nami whispered loudly. This made Sai blush.

"Can we not talk about this?" Sai begged.

"C'mon Sai!" Umi said, "We have to talk about our girl's love life. What else are we here for?" Sai sighed.

"It was... nice. I'll admit." She admitted.

"There we go!" Nami said, "I really don't get why you're so shy about this."

"She's in love Nami!" Umi said in her typical bubbly voice, "It's basically a rule that you have to be shy when you're in love! I mean just look at you and Akage." Nami was the one blushing this time.

"Hey!" Nami whispered forcefully, "Be quiet about that! Fine. I guess you're right." The girls all laughed at this. A soft breeze passed through the trees. It felt good on Sai's skin. She sniffed the air expecting the smell of the woods to fill her lungs. But that wasn't what she smelled. A look of concern crossed her face.

"Sai, what is it?" Nami asked, noticing the change.

"I smell a demon." Sai said.

"What?!" Kaze said, turning around suddenly, "Is it the one we're hunting for?"

"Kaze!" Umi yelled, "Were you listening in on our entire conversation?"

"That's not important right now Umi." Sai said. She turned to Kaze, "I'm not sure. I never caught its scent, but this odor is definitely strong. That means that it's very possible that the demon the stench is coming from is strong too."

"Well we can't just ignore this." Akage pointed out.

"He's right." Kaze agreed, "I don't sense a demonic aura, so we're going to need to rely on your nose Sai. Can you lead us to it?"

"What do you take me for, Kaze?" Sai said, jokingly, "Of course I can. Follow me."

The group set off at a run with Sai leading the way. As they got closer, the smell got stronger and and stronger. The stench was almost overpowering. Sai could barely concentrate on what was happening. If the smell got any stronger, she was going to pass out. Sai was so out of it that she almost ran, face first, into a solid wall of rock that simply seemed to appear out of nowhere once she exited the trees. She managed to stop right before hitting it.

"You alright Sai?" Akage called out to her.

"Yeah." She said, dazed, "This smell is just a little... a little strong." Sai looked up, where the scent was coming from. "It's coming from that cave up there."

"You sure Sai?" Umi asked, concerned, "You seem a little... out of it."

"I'm fine." She lied, "And yes, I'm sure that it's coming from the cave."

"How are we going to get up there? That cave is really high up and this is a sheer cliff face" Nami pointed out.

"Don't worry about that." Akage said, "I've got us covered. You might want to stand back." The group took a few steps back wondering what Akage was going to do. He cracked his knuckles and then closed his eyes. Fire began to shoot out of the ground in a giant circle. When the fire dissipated, a giant bird of fire stood before them.

"Told ya I could get us up there." Akage said, smiling.

"Akage, that bird is made out of fire." Umi pointed out, "Won't it burn us?" Akage looked offended at this.

"Of course not!" He assured everyone, "The fire only burns what I tell it to. Now get on everybody." They all did and the bird proceeded to fly them to the cave mouth.

The bird arrived and all of them except for Sai jumped off. Kaze began to walk forward, but was stopped dead in his tracks by a voice that echoed through the cave.

"So, you've finally arrived." The voice rang, "I've been waiting for you." As the sound of his last word dissipated, a wave of demonic energy washed over the group.

"Damn." Nami cursed, "Kaze, you feel that?"

"Yeah, how could I not?" Kaze said back. At that moment, the source of the energy emerged from the darkness of the cave. It was a man, or at least, a demon in the form of a man. He was tall and actually quite handsome. His jet black hair was long and reached well below his shoulders. The only thing that was off putting about his appearance were his red eyes. That and the massive amount of evil emanating from him. He continued walking and stopped a good distance away from the group.

"Who are you?" Akage growled at the demon.

"Patience child." He said, raising his hand at Akage, "All will be answered in time, but first I think you should be more worried about your little friend back there." The group turned around just in time to see Sai fall off the bird and hit the ground hard. She was unresponsive and limp. Kaze wheeled back around to face the demon.

"What did you do to her?!" He screamed. The demon simply chuckled.

"It appears that my scent was too much for her. She's passed out already." He said, sighing, "Pity. I was hoping to have a little fun with her first. I guess I'll just have to proceed."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Kaze yelled, his voice filled with rage.

"First, I believe an introduction is in order." The demon continued calmly, "I am Konton, your emperor." This stunned the group into silence.

"Are you surprised?" The demon before them asked.

"The empire is devoted to wiping out demons." Nami began, trying to piece things together, "How could a demon be its emperor?" This made Konton burst out in laughter.

"Such a naive child." He said, regaining his composure, "My wish is not to eliminate demons, but simply to make myself the most powerful. If that means wiping out most of them and using humans to do it, well them so be it. Who else but a demon could have the power to take and consolidate power so quickly?"

"You sick bastard!" Akage screamed out at the demon.

"All of you are so naive." Konton said sighing, "I will give a chance, however. I'm not completely evil. Join me and I won't have you slaughtered."

"Why would we ever join you?" Umi yelled.

"Let me show you." He said, raising his arm towards Sai. When his arm was fully outstretched, Sai's limp, unconscious form began to float. She was then brought over to Konton by some invisible force emanating from him. Her body hung upright in mid air beside Konton.

"I believe it is time for you to awake, Saiai." He said softly. Sai's eyes flew open. However, her eyes were different. They were pure red and glowed wickedly. Two purple stripes that came to points appeared each of her cheeks. Her claws grew longer and sharper. She bared her fangs and began to growl angrily.

"What are you doing to her?!" Kaze screamed, his fury coming to a peak.

"I'm bringing out her demon blood." Konton said, "Her parents were foolish. They believed that her spiritual powers would protect her from this and this put no other safeguard against it. All it took was for me to lock that side of her away. Something that is very easy to do when she is unconscious."

"You bastard!" Kaze growled through gritted teeth.

"Hmpf. I will give you one last chance." The demon began, "Join me and you will get your friend back. You don't have to be ripped to shreds by her."

"NEVER!" Kaze screamed. Konton sighed.

"Fine then. Have it your way. Sai kill them." He commanded, "Now excuse me. I have business to take care of." Sai dropped from the air and landed on her feet as the emperor disappeared. She didn't move.

"Sai! You don't have to do this!" Nami cried out desperately.

"Please Sai! Come back to us!" Umi followed. Sai took a step forward. Then she took another. Soon she was walking slowly towards them. It was clear that she was losing the fight against herself.

"Sai!" Kaze cried out to her, his eyes filling with tears, "You don't have to do this. You're stronger than that!" Sai hesitated for a second, but then continued walking. Her eyes began to fill with tears as well. Her tears were different, though. They were red. Blood red. Sai was crying blood.

"R-run." She forced out, "L-leave now."

"Sai..." Was all Kaze could say.

"Please." She said more tears of blood flowing from her eyes, "Get... Out... Now..."

"NO!" Kaze yelled back, "I can't leave you!" Then he did something that no one expected him to do. Kaze ran at Sai. He ran to her and took her into his embrace. "I won't leave you. Ever. Especially not to a demon like this." Sai was silent. Try as she might, she couldn't get her mouth to form words.

"Do it." Konton's voice rang through her mind, "Kill him! KILL!" Sai's mind went blank. She sunk her claws into Kaze's arms and wrenched him off of her. Then she raised her claws and slashed him across the chest faster than anyone could see. Kaze flew back and slammed into the ground.

"Kaze!" Nami shouted, running to his side and kneeling beside him, "Are you alright?"

"Don't worry about me." Kaze said clutching his shredded chest, "I've got to save her." Then it hit him.

"It's her spiritual power that stops this transformation," he thought to himself, "so if I can release that, then she'll turn back." Kaze pulled out a sacred sutra and drew his sword.

"Kaze, what are you doing?" Nami asked, confused.

"Saving Sai." Was his only response before sprinting towards Sai, sword raised. Sai's eyes widened in surprise.

"Damn, I hope this works." Kaze thought to himself. Then he brought the sword down.

The blade cut easily through Sai's kimono. Now the center of her chest was exposed. Kaze took this opportunity and slammed his sutra right in the center of her chest. The sacred power of the sutra clashed with the seal releasing sparks and a wave of pressure that sent Kaze staggering back. Sai cried out in pain. The scream lasted for a few seconds before she passed out. Suddenly a wave of demonic energy washed over them.

"Dammit, what now?" Kaze said. Hundreds of demons appeared from the blackness of the cave.

"That bastard concealed them too?" Umi yelled in exasperation.

"You three!" Akage yelled at them, "Get Sai out of here! I'll hold of these demons!"

"Are you sure Akage?" Nami asked, worry clear in her voice.

"Yeah." He said, smiling softly at her, "These things won't last long. Now get her out of here!"

"Thanks Akage." Kaze said, "Nami. Umi. Help me carry Sai to the bird." The two girls ran over to help Kaze and they carried Sai and places her onto the bird. Then the three of them climbed on.

"You be careful, okay." Nami called out to Akage as the fire bird took off. Akage just nodded and then turned to the demons.

"You messed with the wrong guy demons." He muttered, summoning lighting to his hands, "NOW DIE!" A blinding flash filled the cave sending a beam of light out of the cave mouth.

"AKAGE!" Nami cried out, "NOOO!"


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

They returned to the clearing they had camped in the night before. It had been a few hours since they had left the cave and Akage. Umi had bandaged Kaze's wound and Nami hadn't stopped crying since they got back and Sai was still unconscious with Kaze never leaving her side. The sun was setting and the sky was a beautiful shade of orange. No one really wanted to go back to the village. They had failed. The demon, Konton, had gotten away. All that was left to do now was wait.

"Nami, it's going to be okay." Umi said to her sister, trying once again to soothe her. It didn't work.

"But he's gone!" Nami sobbed, "He died saving us! How can I live with that?"

"He died well, Nami. That's what matters." Umi assured her.

"But I never got to tell him how I feel!" She said, her tears falling more than ever, "I was always this flirty girl around him and never got to tell him that I... I loved him!"

"I love you too Nami." A familiar voice whispered softly into her ear, "Now stop crying. Please. It pains me to see you this sad." Nami was stunned into silence. She knew that voice.

"A-Akage..." She said, turning to face him. Her eyes met his. He was smiling softly at her. She threw her arms around him and buried her face into his shoulder and started crying again, but this time, they were tears of joy.

"I thought you were gone." Nami cried.

"Not quite." He said, putting his arms around her, "Those demons couldn't get me."

"So what took you so long?" She asked desperately.

"Well, I had to do at least part of what the village leader told us to do." He broke away from the embrace and pointed at a group of women behind him, "We may not have been able to slay Konton, but I at least had to save the village women. It was a little difficult without Sai's nose, but I found them."

"So you left me to find other women?" Nami asked accusingly.

"Wait, what?" Akage said, surprised, "No! It's not like that Nami! I swear!" Nami burst into laughter.

"I'm kidding, Akage." She said, hugging him tightly again, "I'm just glad you're back." They spent a few more moments like that and then broke away from each other.

"So how's Sai, Kaze?" Akage asked, turning to his friend. He hadn't left her side once, even when Akage had come back.

"Not good." Kaze told him, emotion straining his voice, "She is still unconscious. Her breathing has gone back to normal, but she won't wake up."

"I... I'm sorry." Was all Akage knew to say.

"Don't be." Kaze said, "This is my fault. I did this to her. We should have just left. She could have gotten free on her own and none of this would have happened."

"You can't blame yourself Kaze." Akage said, "You were trying to save her. The real blame here is Konton's. You're the hero here. She may not be awake yet, but she's herself and that's what matters."

"Thanks Akage." Kaze told his friend, "It's getting late. The sun has almost left the sky. It will be dark soon. You all should get ready to go to sleep."

"What about you?" Akage asked.

"I don't think I'm going to to get any sleep tonight." Kaze said. Akage nodded and got up to prepare things for that night.

Night fell quickly after that. The moon was a sliver in the sky, but the fire that Kaze kept going next to him and Sai provided enough light to see. The events of the day replayed endlessly in his mind. He was trying desperately to find something that would tell him how to proceed from here and how to get Sai to wake up, but there was nothing. All he could do was wait. Kaze laid down next to Sai. As much as he didn't like it, he was going to need some sleep if they were going to have travel tomorrow. He made sure, though, that the last thing he saw before drifting off was the face of the woman he loved.

"What happened? Where am I? How did I get here? Who's laying beside me? Why is my entire body aching and smell like blood?" All of these questions and more races through Sai's mind. It was cool, so it had to be night time and there was a fire going nearby. The smells had all come flooding back into her nostrils too quickly. Some were familiar, but she couldn't distinguish them. Sai guessed that the overpowering scent in the cave had burned out her senses. The cave. The last thing she remembered clearly was passing out in there. Everything else past that was just a blur or a random image. A sword. Blood. Lots of blood. A blinding light. None of it made sense. Her eyes were still closed. Deep down, she didn't really want to open them. What if everything she cared about was gone? She wouldn't be able to take that, but she knew that she had to open her eyes, so she did. She had to blink a few times to process what she saw. Kaze's peaceful sleeping face was just inches from her.

"He's alive!" Was the joyous thought that passed through her mind, "He's alive and alright."

Sai got up and stretched out her muscles. She realized that she must have been out for hours. That was the only reason for her being so stiff. She looked down at herself and realized that she was wearing one of Nami's kimonos. It was white with purple flowers printed across it. Kaze's sleeping form was at her feet. There were bandages all across his chest. He'd been injured. Sai looked down at her claws and saw that they were caked in blood. She sniffed them. It was Kaze's blood.

"Did I do that to him?" Sai thought to herself, frantically, "What happened to me? What is going on? Why would I hurt Kaze?" Sai stepped forward. Her foot landed on a twig and it snapped loudly. Kaze's eyes flew open. He bolted upright and looked around frantically until his eyes came upon Sai. They widened.

"SAI!" He yelled in pure elation and relief as he quickly got up and ran to her taking her into his tight embrace, "You're okay!"

"K-Kaze..." Sai struggled to get out.

"Don't talk." Kaze told her, motioning her over to the fire, "You need to sit down and rest." She sat down by the fire and Kaze sat down beside her.

"So do you feel alright?" Kaze asked her.

"Yeah. I feel fine. I just have no idea what's going on." Sai admitted.

"Don't worry about that. You just need to-" Kaze said before Sai cut him off.

"Kaze, stop. I need to know. Did I do that to you?" She asked, pointing at his bandaged chest.

"S-Sai... Sai that wasn't you." Kaze told her.

"Then why do my claws smell like blood Kaze?" Sai asked him, tears flooding her eyes, "If it wasn't me, then why are my claws covered in your blood?"

"You weren't yourself Sai." Kaze answered quickly, "That bastard Konton was controlling you. He made you do it."

"Kaze, don't lie to me." Sai told him, "I know what happened to me and so do you. It's not hard to figure out. My demon blood overwhelmed me. No one was controlling me. Everything I did was out of my own bloodlust. It happened to my father too and, from what I know, it's a miracle that you're still alive."

"See that's the thing Sai!" Kaze said excitedly, "You didn't kill anyone! You stopped yourself because you're stronger than that!"

"But I'm not strong!" Sai snapped, "I nearly killed you! If that demon can do this to me, then what's to say that next time I won't kill you or your sisters or anyone else?" Sai turned away from Kaze, "I'm a danger to everyone here and I shouldn't even be traveling with you." Kaze grabbed her, pulled her around to face him, and kissed her. Sai was too surprised to protest. He pulled away after a few moments.

"Sai, I need you here. I need you with me. Haven't you realized that yet?" He said, gazing intensely into her eyes.

"Kaze..." Was all Sai could say.

"I'm in love with you Sai. I would walk through Hell to be with you. This danger you say you're putting me in, which I don't buy, means nothing to me." Kaze told her, voice unwavering. Sai couldn't control herself. She began sobbing and buried her face in Kaze's shoulder. He put his arms around her and brought her close to him. After a few minutes, Sai's tears stopped, but she didn't move. Kaze was warm and she liked being in his embrace. It was illogical, but after everything, it just felt safe. Eventually she fell asleep like that, in Kaze's arms. Now that Kaze knew that Sai was alright, it didn't take him long to drift off to sleep either.

The next morning, the sun was shining brightly. Sai and Kaze were the first to get up and were getting their things ready by the time the others woke up. Nami was first. She sat up and stretched before turning around to where Sai and Kaze were. It took her a second to process what she was seeing, but after a moment it clicked.

"SAI!" She bolted up and ran over to hug her friend, "You're alright!"

"What's going on?" Umi said yawning.

"Umi! Sai's okay!" Nami shouted at her sister.

"What?" Umi said, turning until she saw Sai, "SAI!" Umi also bolted up and ran over to join in the hug. Akage, however, was still asleep. Kaze walked over to him and kneeled down beside his head. He put his mouth inches from his ear.

"WAKE UP!" Kaze yelled into Akage's ear. Akage sprang into the air, sparks of fire flying from him.

"What?! What's going on?" Akage asked frantically.

"Sai's awake." Kaze said, calmly walking away. This shocked Akage into silence. He looked around for a bit until he saw the clump of girls. Crushed in between Nami and Umi was Sai.

"Sai!" Akage called out to her, "Glad to see you're alright."

"Yeah, well I won't be for much longer if this keeps up." Sai said sarcastically, "Seriously guys, I can't breathe." The twins broke off their chokingly tight embrace.

"Sorry Sai." Nami said.

"We're just really happy to see that you're alright." Umi followed.

"So how do you like my kimono that you have on?" Nami asked her.

"It's nice. I really like it. Kinda wondering why I'm wearing it though. Where are my clothes?" Sai asked, bewildered.

"I'll let Kaze tell you that story." Nami said winking at her. Sai blushed. She knew that this was going to be an interesting story.

"Hey guys." Akage called to everyone, "We should get going. We've gotta get these women back to their homes."

"Good call, Akage." Kaze yelled back. The group finished getting their things together and then proceeded to start traveling their way back to the village. This time, though, they let Sai use Dragon Wave to cut down the trees. Traveling went a lot faster than it had before and was much more enjoyable. Nami and Akage walked together hand-in-hand, while Kaze talked with Umi. Sai led the way. The group reached the village in only a few hours. The villagers saw them exit the woods and ran to greet them. It was a tearful reunion between parents and daughters, husbands and wives, and brothers and sisters. The village leader found them after he had reunited with his own daughter.

"Thank you so much." He said to Kaze, who was at the head of the group, "Thank you for bringing my daughter and the rest of the women back to us. How can we ever repay you?"

"Don't worry about payment. Helping you was the least we could do." Kaze assured the man.

"Well that simply won't do. You must at least stay the night with us." The man insisted, "We will provide everything. I'm assuming that all if you will want baths after a hunt such as this, so I will have them prepared at once. In the meantime, I believe you will be busy dealing with the entire village thanking you."

The man was right. All of them spent the next hour shaking hands, hugging people, receiving all sorts of other forms of gratitude. By the time they were finished, all of them were ready for a bath, a meal, and then some sleep. Sai was bathing by herself in the same bath that Kaze had walked in on last time. She thought back to that. It felt like such a long time ago even though it had only been a few days. So much had happened. Kaze had even told her that he loved her. Sai, even though she loved him back, had no idea how to proceed and she guessed that neither did he. They would have to figure it out as they went along. After all, that's what her parents had done and they seemed to turn out alright.

Sai finished her bath and walked out of the bathroom. She found a new kimono laying outside the door. Obviously someone had told them about what had happened to her clothes. It had probably been Nami, considering the fact that her kimono was no longer in the room. This new one suited her much better. It was more her size and had red flowers printed on it. The new kimono fit her well and still allowed for quite a bit of movement. Above all, it seemed to be made out of a very durable material, one she hadn't seen before. It would be perfect for fighting. Sai decided that she would have to ask the village leader about it tomorrow before they left. However, the more pressing matter was food. She smelled it and she was hungry. A plate full of it was sitting on a small table in the room. It looked delicious, though Sai was a little disappointed that she would be eating alone. However, that didn't stop her from sitting down and starting to eat. She didn't get through much of it, though, before she heard a knock on her door.

"Who is it?" Sai called out.

"It's me." Kaze's familiar voice said back, "Can I come in?"

"Oh, Kaze." Sai said, surprised. She hadn't expected company. "Yeah. Sure. Come on in." Kaze slid open the door. He was carrying a plate of food similar to hers. After closing the door behind him, he walked over to where Sai was eating, put his food down, and sat across from her.

"I figured that I couldn't let you eat alone." Kaze said smiling. This made Sai blush slightly.

"You didn't have to do this, you know?" She said to him.

"I know." He responded, "But I wanted to. I enjoy your company."

"Thanks Kaze." She said, blushing more.

"Hey, it looks like the village got you a new kimono." Kaze pointed out, "It looks nice. I like it."

"Thanks. I do too. I really like how it feels." Sai said, "But I do want to know what happened to my other clothes."

"Is it really that important?" Kaze asked trying to avoid telling the story. Sai have him a look that said "of course this is important," so he proceeded to tell her the story.

"Wait." Sai said, trying process the story, "So you cut open my kimono, in front of everyone?"

"Well, I mean, it was to save you." Kaze said, trying to justify his actions.

"Did anybody see anything?" Sai asked.

"Well... Uh... No... Not at first..." Kaze stammered, his face bright red.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Sai asked, annoyed.

"Well, after I put the sutra on, it kinda flew open." Kaze admitted.

"Dammit..." Sai said in a defeated voice, "So everyone saw?"

"I haven't really asked... But Sai, I swear that I didn't mean for it to happen like that." Kaze told her.

"Don't worry about it." Sai told him. That took Kaze completely off guard. "I mean, Nami and Umi are basically my sisters, so that doesn't really matter. Akage is in love with Nami, so he wouldn't be interested in me. And well, you, you've seen everything already, so I guess I really shouldn't care that it happened again by accident."

"So... You're really not mad?" Kaze asked incredulously.

"Nope." Sai assured him with a soft smile on her face, "Not at all."

"You're the best Sai, you know that?" This made them both laugh. They kept talking and eating like that for a few hours. Eventually, Kaze decided that it was time for him to leave. He knew that both of them needed sleep after all that they had been through. They said their goodnights and Kaze headed back off to his room. Sai was a little sad to him go, but was happy to finally be able to get some sleep. It came quickly to her that night and she was fast asleep in minutes.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Sai and the rest of the group awoke early that morning. They had hoped to get out of the village without drawing too much attention. However, they had no such luck. The village leader had been waiting outside the inn for them to get up. He insisted that they stay and have breakfast with the entire village that morning. None of them could really refuse this show of hospitality, so they stayed. It wasn't long before breakfast was ready. The entire village ate together. Everyone seemed to want to know how the group had slain the demon. Sai and the rest did their best to avoid actually answering the question, however, since the demon was still alive and was the emperor of all things. Eventually, people seemed to give up and find other things to talk about. The woman that had made Sai's kimono even found her to ask her how she liked it. Sai told her that it was wonderful. It turned out that the kimono was very similar to her father's Robe of the Fire Rat. Her new kimono was essentially just a normal kimono that had been soaked in a special solution made from the flower that was pictured on the cloth. The flower gave the kimono armor-like qualities and made it fire-proof. Most amazingly, the kimono could regenerate itself when cut. Sai thanked the woman for her generosity. After breakfast, the group agreed that it was time to leave the village and keep traveling West. They said their goodbyes and headed on their way.

Conversation was good. They had a lot to talk about with all that had happened recently. Suddenly, Sai stopped.

"What is it Sai?" Umi asked, "What's up?"

"I smell demons." Sai said, "Lots of them."

"Where?" Kaze asked, confused, "I can't sense anything."

"They're flying in the clouds above us." Sai said, "But I don't think that they're interested in us."

"Well what do they want." Akage asked.

"No idea." Sai told him.

"Should we follow them?" Nami asked.

"They have the same properties of Konton. Sai can smell them, but they don't give off an aura." Kaze pointed out, "We have to go after them."

"Kaze, that obviously means that it's a trap. Konton obviously wants Sai. He knows that we won't be able to kill her and that he can control her in her demon state since his aura completely overpowers hers." Umi explained.

"DAMMIT!" Sai screamed, startling the group, "I'm not going to be a handicap! If these demons can lead us to Konton, trap or not I want to follow them. He may have gotten me once, but I won't fall for it again. I will kill him." The group was stunned into silence for a moment. Nami was the first to break the silence.

"Sai, you're not a handicap. You're our friend and we protect our friends." She said.

"Nami's right." Akage continued, "Besides, we aren't strong enough to take him on yet and if he couldn't succeed with you, then he would try it on me. I'm a half-demon too remember and I'm nowhere near as strong as you are." Sai didn't know what to say. She turned to Kaze. He walked to her and took her hand into his.

"Sai, I love you. It's selfish, I know, but I can't put you through that again and risk losing you." Kaze told her, gazing into her eyes, "But I promise, we will kill that bastard. No one does that to us and can hope to get away with it."

"K-k-Kaze..." Sai stammered. She couldn't speak. Words just wouldn't come out. Her friends loved her, her man loved her, and wanted to protect her. Then a wave of realization hit her. The scent of the demons had stopped traveling away from them. Now it was growing stronger, closer to them. Kaze saw the change in Sai's face.

"Sai, what's wrong?" He asked, face full of concern.

"The demons changed course." Sai said, "They're coming for us now."

"Dammit!" Umi cursed, "The bastard must be watching us. He must have figured out that we weren't planning to follow him and now he's sent the demons after us." At that moment, thousands of demons burst forth from a cloud. They all seemed to be lesser demons, but the sheer number of them would make this a hard fight.

"You guys ready?" Sai asked, drawing her swords.

"Always." Came Kaze's reply.

"Well then," Sai said, turning towards the demon horde, "DRAGON RIFT!" The attack hit the lead group of demons and completely obliterated them. However, there was a problem. Even though she'd killed perhaps 500 demons, there were still thousands coming at them.

"Damn." Sai cursed, "How are we supposed to fight all of them?" Nami was the one to respond.

"I have no-" She started as the thought hit her. "Sai! Use Shinseina Kiba!"

"What?" Sai called back.

"A priestess' blade can create a purifying wind right? That will knock all of these demons out of the sky. Then they'll be much easier to fight!"

"Nami, you're a genius!" Sai said, sheathing her demon swords and summoning her sacred blade. It really was a genius idea and Sai was kicking herself for not thinking of it earlier. She raised the blade above her head and began to spin it above her head. A massive wind infused with spiritual energy appeared immediately above her head. Sai let this wind grow to epic proportions before releasing it at the demons. The wind ravaged the demon ranks, purifying the air around them. Many were killed by this assault, but most simply fell out of the sky and crashed into the ground. Now they could fight the horde on their own terms, though Sai would have to use her Shinseina Kiba in order to keep the air purified and the demons grounded. The thing was, though, Sai was just as good with this sword as she was with her demon blades.

"DRAGON STRIKE!" Sai screamed out. Sesshomaru had taught her this one. The technique did not come from the sword itself, but used the sword as a medium for energy to be strengthened and released. A massive dragon of spiritual energy appeared. Lightning of the same energy struck from the sky and waves of it struck from the ground amongst the demon horde. The dragon then crashed into the center of the army, causing a massive explosion. More than half of the army was completely eradicated by the attack.

"Sai that was amazing!" Kaze said to her.

"Yeah, but I can't do it again." Sai said out of breath. She was sweating and was having trouble staying upright. "That took a lot out of me," She raised her sword, "but that's not important. Let's kill these bastards!" She charged into the fray with the rest of the group following close behind. It wasn't long before Sai was exhausted to the point of nearly passing out. Her moves were getting sluggish and sloppy. She had released too much power in her first attack and was using up what she had left very quickly. After a few more minutes of fighting, she could no longer keep the sword going and had to dismiss it. Then she went unconscious.

Nami saw Sai hit the ground. She didn't know what was wrong, but she knew that Sai was in trouble.

"Hiraikotsu!" Nami yelled as she threw the weapon to kill the demons trying to take advantage of Sai in her vulnerable state. The weapon easy cut the demons into pieces and Nami caught it on her way over to Sai. She saw that Sai was unconscious.

"Dammit." Nami thought to herself, "Sai, why'd you push yourself so far?" Nami threw Sai over her shoulder and drew her sword. She began to fight her way to the edge of the army of demons. Kaze noticed the two and immediately ran over to help. They got outside of the horde of demons and set Sai down.

"What happened?" Kaze asked.

"Sai used up too much power." Nami explained, "There's no way that she could have finished this fight after that Dragon Strike."

"Dammit." Kaze cursed, "Nami, go back out and help Akage and Umi. They're surrounded and need help. I'll stay here with Sai." Nami nodded and charged back into the fray.

"Sai, why'd you have to push yourself so hard?" Kaze said to himself. Sai's eyelids cracked open.

"Just had to worry you a bit." She said smiling weakly.

"Sai you're alright!" Kaze said hugging her tightly.

"Yeah I'm fine." She said, pushing him away, "Now you've gotta go help the others."

"But... What about you?" Kaze asked.

"I'll be fine." She assured him, "Now those demons are going to be able to fly again soon and the they'll run away. You need to be there to support them until then." Kaze nodded and stood up to leave, but then stopped.

"You sure you're going to okay?" He asked. Sai's only response was to smile and blow him a kiss. Kaze smiled back and then headed to Akage and the others. Sai watched him go, hoping that he'd be alright.

"What?!" Umi yelled out when Nami had finished telling her what had happened. She wrenched one of her blades out of a demon. "Sai passed out at a time like this?!"

"Like I said, she exhausted herself." Nami said as she threw her Hiraikotsu into the horde, "Sai killed a few thousand demons in one strike and then kept fighting. I'd say she did pretty well."

"I know." Umi said, sighing, "It's just that we could really use her help right now. There are still at least a thousand demons left."

"DUCK!" Akage yelled at the two. They did just as a bolt of lightning flashed over them and took out a group that had been about to attack them from behind.

"Thanks Akage." Nami called out as she swung her weapon in a wide semicircle, cutting many demons in half, "Umi we have to cut her some slack. We can take these guys. I mean, Akage is handling a few hundred on his own right now."

"Yeah I just don't know how much longer that's going to last." Umi said doubtfully. Kaze came running up from behind.

"We won't have to for much longer. The air is slowly being defiled again. That means then demons will be able to fly again. Sai thinks that they'll run away after that." He explained.

"Well I guess that's a good thing," Nami began, "but why aren't you with Sai?"

"She woke up and told me to come here." Kaze said, "I didn't want to leave, but she made me."

"If she's awake she'll be fine!" Akage yelled at him. A burst of flame left his body, engulfing the fifty demons that had surrounded him.

"Damn that's sexy." Nami said, staring at him.

"Keep in your pants sis." Umi said sarcastically, lopping the heads off the three demons in front of her. Nami rolled her eyes and went back to fighting. It continued like that for another fifteen minutes. After a while, though, the demons began to take flight and flee the battle. Sai had been right. These demons were scared and didn't want to die. They were all gone within minutes. Kaze and the rest of the group ran over to where Sai was.

"You guys are alright." She said weakly when they got to her. Her claws were covered in blood. She'd obviously had to fight off some demons that had strayed from the main battle.

"Don't worry about us." Kaze said, "I want to know how you are."

"I'm fine." She said before passing out again.

"Dammit!" Kaze cursed, "We need to get her out of here!"

"On it." Akage said. He summoned a massive bird of fire. "Let's put her on here and fly back to that village."

"Good idea." Nami said, "They'll treat Sai there." Kaze nodded and picked Sai up and put her on the bird. The rest of group followed and the bird shot into the air.

They arrived back at the village after only a short flight. It was clear that Akage was pushing himself to maintain this. He landed the bird just outside the village. Kaze picked Sai up and jumped off. He ran into the village and was met by the village leader.

"What's wrong? What has happened to her?" The man asked, clearly worried.

"We ran into an army of demons." Kaze explained, "We slew all of them, but Sai exerted too much energy." The man immediately called some people that were watching nearby to get the doctor of the village. He then turned back to Kaze.

"We need to get her looked at." The village leader said, "I'm not sure what we'll be able to do, but we have to try. We owe you that much. Follow me." The group followed him, Kaze still carrying Sai. He led them to a house near the edge of the village. The doctor was waiting inside.

"Come, put her down on the bedding." The doctor said. Kaze did. "Now what happened?" Kaze explained everything that had happened since they'd left the village up until that point.

"I see." The doctor said, thinking, "Likely, what she needs most is rest, but I'm going to need to check for injury. She looks far too pale." Kaze saw that he was right. He hadn't noticed in the chaos, but Sai was much paler than usual. The doctor continued talking.

"We must get her kimono off. Will one of you girls do this please?"

"I'll do it." Umi said. The doctor and the rest of the guys left the room. Umi began removing Sai'd kimono. Nami helped her get it off faster. They saw the blood before they finished getting the kimono off. There was a lot of it coming from wounds to her right shoulder and her left leg. She'd also been slashed across the stomach. They called for the doctor frantically. He ran in immediately, followed by Kaze. Both of them saw the blood at the same time.

"Damn." The doctor cursed, "The blood can't soak through the kimono, though, if it weren't for that kimono, she'd probably be dead. I need to get to work right away." He called for help and several attendants ran into the room. Work on Sai began immediately. Kaze stood by speechless. His mind had gone blank. Sai was hurt, bleeding out. She was in pain and he hadn't protected her. He fell to his knees, defeated.

"Hey Kaze." Akage said gently, kneeling down to face him, "Let's get out of here. You and I both need to rest."

"No." Kaze said immediately, "I can't leave her, not again."

"Kaze, we can't do anything for her." Akage told him, "We'll just get in the way. You need rest, so we can be there for her later." Kaze nodded. Akage helped him up and led him to where the two had stayed last time. Work on Sai continued well into the night. Her wounds were severe, but her half-demon nature allowed her body to take a lot more damage than a normal human. The doctor finally finished as the sun started to peak over the horizon. Sai was sound asleep and it looked like she was going to be alright. He called for Kaze, who was already awake. Kaze was to be there for Sai when she awoke, meanwhile all the people that had worked on Sai all night, including Nami and Umi, were going to get some sleep. Kaze was okay with that. This time, at least, he was going to be there for her.


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Sai awoke that morning to the sun shining brightly in her eyes. She was in a bed wrapped in bandages.

"How'd I get here?" Sai thought to herself. She looked around the room that she was in. It was small and much of it had been stained with blood. Her blood by the smell of it. "Dammit. I can't remember anything." She thought, "The last thing I remember was that battle." Sai sat up slowly. It was extremely painful and she let out a little whimper. She heard movement in the other room. The door opened and Kaze walked through.

"Sai..." He said breathlessly. Before Sai knew it, Kaze was across the room and hugging her tightly, "Sai I'm so sorry. It's my fault that this happened. I didn't protect you and you got hurt. I'm so sorry."

"Kaze..." Sai began. She didn't know what to say. Kaze was there for her. She started crying into Kaze's shoulder, "Don't apologize to me Kaze. You're here and that's all that matters." Kaze was speechless. He didn't know what to do.

"Sai please don't cry, please-" Kaze said before Sai interrupted him.

"Stop." Then she kissed him. Kaze was confused. He didn't know how Sai could feel anything towards him anymore. Then she broke away and started speaking again, "Kaze, I love you and nothing is going to change that. Ever. I got hurt because of my own stupidity. I knew that I shouldn't have kept fighting, but I did anyway. Nothing you could ever do could stop me from being stubborn." Sai smiled through her tears at this. Kaze smiled back. "Now let me go." She continued jokingly, "Your hug hurts." Kaze broke off immediately.

"I'm so sorry!" He said to Sai, "I didn't mean to hurt you, I was just so happy to see you. I-I..." Sai started laughing.

"Gotcha." Sai said, winking.

"Sai..." Kaze sighed, "I was really worried that I was hurting you."

"Don't worry about me Kaze. Please, I'll be fine." Sai assured him, wiping her eyes.

"How could I not worry about my woman?" Kaze said seriously, "Well I guess I should let you get some rest." He turned to leave.

"Hey!" Sai yelled at him, "Don't leave. Stay here. Stay with me." Kaze smiled and then walked over and sat beside her.

"So I'm your woman huh?" Sai asked jokingly.

"Well... Um..." Kaze stammered, blushing heavily. This made Sai laugh again.

"I guess it's true." Sai admitted, "As long as you're my man." Kaze smiled.

"Definitely." He said. They kissed again. It was a kiss full of love and passion. Sai knew that she wanted to spend her life with this man and now she knew that he wanted the same thing.

The two spent the rest of the day together. Sai outright refused to see anyone else. The only other person besides Kaze that saw her that day was the doctor who came in to check on her wounds, which were healing quickly. Sai spent the entire day drifting in and out of sleep. She was exhausted, but every time she woke up, Kaze was there with her. He never left her side. When Sai wasn't sleeping she was talking with Kaze. They talked about anything and everything. The two had grown up together, but they were doing everything they could to learn more about each other. As the sun began to set, they started talking about their future. Sai was snuggled up next to Kaze who had his arm around her.

"Kaze." Sai began, "What do you think is going to happen next?"

"I have no idea Sai." Kaze admitted, "This demon is strong and he's the emperor. He's going to be tough to beat, but we'll do it, together."

"How?" Sai asked, "How can we beat someone with this much power?"

"I don't know. Honestly, I don't, but we'll do it." Kaze said confidently, "We'll find whatever we need to find, do whatever we need to do, to rid the world of that thing. If we stay together, nothing can stop us." Sai's only response was to snuggle up closer to Kaze. He laid his head on top of hers.

"Sai?" Kaze asked.

"Yeah?" Sai said.

"When this is over," he began, "will you stay with me?" The question didn't hang in the air for long.

"Of course I will Kaze." Sai responded, as though the answer was obvious, "What kind of question is that?"

"Well, I was just wondering if... If..." Kaze stopped. He didn't know how to proceed with his question.

"If what Kaze?" Sai asked, perplexed.

"I was wondering if you would marry me, Sai." Kaze said. He didn't know how, but the words just came out, almost of their own accord, "If you would bear my children." Sai's breath caught in her throat. She hadn't expected this. The question hung in the air a little longer than the first, but she knew her answer. Sai lifter her head off of Kaze's chest and looked him straight in his eyes. She smiled softly.

"Yes." She said simply.

"You will?" Kaze asked incredulously. He couldn't believe that she'd said yes.

"Of course I will Kaze." Sai told him, "I love you and I want to be with you." Sai started giggling, "It may be a little early to start talking about children, but one day, I'll do that too. We'll have a family together."

"You're the best girl in the world Sai." Kaze said to her. Then he kissed her. It was their first kiss as an engaged couple and it was wonderful, by far the most intimate moment they'd ever had.

The sun had set and it was nighttime, but Sai and Kaze were still awake. They were sitting on the bed, snuggled against each other. Neither was really talking. Both of them just wanted to be with each other. Suddenly a thought hit Sai and she started to giggle.

"What?" Kaze asked, "What's so funny?"

"We're going to have to tell your sisters." Sai said.

"Oh no, you're right." Kaze said jokingly. He was laughing too now. "That could be interesting."

"Oh yeah." Sai agreed, "We won't be able to get a word in."

"Do we have to tell them?" Kaze complained jokingly.

"Yes Kaze." Sai said rolling her eyes, "They're going to be my maids of honor, so they need to know. Plus they're my best friends."

"I know, I know. I was just joking." Kaze told her. "Well if we're going to have to deal with that tomorrow, then we should get some sleep." Kaze started to get up to leave.

"Kaze?" Sai said.

"Yes Sai?" Kaze asked, stopping.

"Stay with me tonight." She said, tightening her grip on him a little, "Please just stay with me. I don't want anything else, but for you to just be with me." Kaze smiled.

"I would do anything for you Sai." He told her, truthfully. Sai smiled and laid her head against his chest.

"Thank you." Sai said. She fell asleep quickly after that. Kaze looked at her sleeping form. His last thought before following her into sleep was that he held the most precious thing in the world to him there in his arms.

Sai awoke the next morning next to Kaze. She yawned loudly.

"Oh you're awake, eh?" Kaze said.

"Yeah." Sai said simply.

"Good. I didn't want to wake you by getting up, so I've just kinda been laying here." Kaze said, laughing lightly.

"You didn't have to do that." Sai told him, "I'm a pretty heavy sleeper."

"Yeah, I know, but I enjoyed watching you sleep." Kaze admitted. Then he smiled, "Plus I didn't want to have to explain to my sisters why we spent the night together..." Sai blushed.

"Yeah that might be a difficult one... Especially since we're engaged now." She said.

"Well, whenever you're ready, I guess we should go out and face them." Kaze sighed.

"Can we at least have breakfast first?" Sai whined. Kaze smiled at her.

"Sure. I'll make it." Kaze offered, "I don't want you causing yourself anymore pain."

"Thanks babe." Sai said smiling at him. She winked and let him get out of bed.

"Pet names already huh?" Kaze asked jokingly.

"Of course, hon. That's what married couples do." Sai told him, giggling. Kaze sighed.

"Alright sweetie..." He said, laughing to himself as he left to prepare breakfast. The two ate together once he had finished. Once breakfast was done, Kaze cleaned up and the two prepared to leave. Kaze put his arm around Sai and then they headed out into the village. They were met by the curious faces of Nami and Umi. Akage was in the background with a face that said "I'm sorry guys, but I couldn't stop them."

"Soooo..." Nami began, "how was your night?"

"Oh you know, pretty uneventful." Sai said nonchalantly, "Nothing really happened."

"Yeah." Kaze agreed, "Not much really of note."

"Really?" Umi said, doubtfully, "You two spent the entire night together, in a house with one bed, and didn't do anything worth talking about."

"Nope." Sai said simply.

"Nothing at all." Kaze continued.

"Are you sure?" Nami asked, disappointed.

"Well..." Sai said, "Maybe one thing... But it's not really important."

"TELL US!" The twins yelled in unison.

"I don't know Kaze. Should we tell them?" Sai asked.

"No, I don't think it's worth their time. It's not really all that important." Kaze answered.

"Please tell us! Please, please, please!" Umi begged.

"Well I guess we have to tell them huh Sai?" Kaze said.

"Yeah I guess so." Sai said thoughtfully, "Which one of us should tell them, though?"

"I think you should do it Sai." Kaze told her.

"Okay I will." Sai said, smiling up at him. She turned her face towards her friends. They were staring at her expectantly. Sai smiled at them, "We're getting married!" Sai said happily.

"WHAT?!" The two screamed in unison. They rushed in and hugged Sai and Kaze tightly.

"Sai that's amazing!" Nami said once they'd broken away.

"You two are so perfect together!" Umi followed.

"Thanks guys." Sai said blushing.

"I can't say that I was expecting that to be your news." Nami said, laughing.

"Yeah seriously." Umi agreed, "But I also can't say that I'm surprised that you two are marrying."

"Yeah, I did kinda expect you two to marry young." Nami admitted, "You guys are going to be so happy together!"

"So did you do anything... Else to express your love?" Umi asked, curiously.

"No Umi..." Kaze sighed, "Save that for when you're actually married."

"Fine. Have it your way." Umi said, laughing. Akage walked up to the group.

"Hey guys, I'm really happy for you." He said to them, "You two really are perfect for each other."

"Thanks Akage." Kaze said, "You're the best." Akage smiled.

"Hey we should get going." Sai pointed out.

"Sai are you sure you're ready?" Nami asked, "I know you heal fast, but those wounds were really bad."

"I'll be fine." Sai assured her, "I'll be back at full capacity after today and I want to keep moving."

"Okay, if you're positive." Nami said, still a little bit concerned. They group parted as each one set off to prepare their things. It wasn't long before they finished and met back up in the village. They said their goodbyes to the villagers one last time and headed out on their way.

The group walked for hours. Yet, the entire time, all anyone seemed to want to talk about was Sai and Kaze's engagement. They wanted to know how Kaze had asked, what their plans were, when the wedding would be, when, in truth, the two of them had no idea what was going to happen next. They just knew that they were going to get married. The new couple tried to change the topic more than a few times, but it never worked for long. As the sun began to set, Akage suggested that they stop. They all agreed and found a nice place to camp. After everything had been prepared and the group had eaten, Kaze went to bed immediately. He said that he had been tired out by everyone's unending questions. Umi and Akage soon followed. After they fell asleep, it was just Sai and Nami sitting to together by the fire.

"Hey Sai?" Nami said.

"Yeah?" Sai responded.

"I wanted to ask you something." Nami told her, checking to make sure everyone was asleep.

"Sure what is it?" Sai asked.

"How do you and Kaze do it?" Nami asked, bluntly.

"What do you mean?" Sai said, confused.

"Your relationship is so perfect and... I want that." Nami admitted, "It's a new feeling to me, but I want to have a lasting relationship with someone."

"You mean Akage?" Sai questioned. Nami blushed lightly.

"Yeah." Nami said, "So, how do you do it?"

"Well, we're both pretty forward with each other." Sai began, "It didn't really take long for Kaze to tell me that he loved me and after that we just kinda moved forward accordingly, if not a little fast."

"Hmm..." Was Nami's only response.

"I mean, Akage came to me right before we went to slay that demon asking how he could get you to notice him." Sai continued, "I'm pretty sure that he stayed back to fight those demons in the cave for you. He is willing to risk his life for you and if you don't remember, he's already told you that he loves you and you've said the same thing about him." Nami's eyes opened wide. In all of the chaos, she'd forgotten about that moment. She felt terrible now.

"Oh no!" Nami said, burying her face in her hands, "I completely forgot about that! I haven't done anything to follow that up! He probably thinks that I was just being emotional and didn't really mean it! I'm such an idiot!"

"No I don't think that's it." Came Sai's reply. Nami looked at her, confused, "I just think that he has no idea what to do next." Sai continued, "He thinks that it's his responsibility to make the first move and that you're just waiting for him. My guess is that he wants to do something about his feelings really badly, but just has no idea what to do."

"You really think so?" Nami asked hopefully.

"I'm positive." Sai assured her.

"Well, what should I do?" Nami asked.

"Make it easier for him." Sai told her, "Drop hints, be romantic, do something to give him a pretty obvious opening."

"I think I can do that." Nami said thoughtfully. Sai rolled her eyes.

"No Nami. You can't seduce him." Sai told her, "Damn girl, can't you keep it together at least some of the time." The two girls laughed at this.

"So how should I do it then?" Nami asked.

"Well..." Sai began, "Spend time with him, talk to him, be close to him all the time, lay your head on his shoulder, be alone with him, something like that."

"You think that will work?" Nami questioned.

"Hey that's what I did and I'm getting married." Sai told he jokingly. Nami laughed.

"Fine. Fine. I'll try it." Nami said, "Now we should get some sleep too, you know." Sai agreed and the two headed off to bed, Sai beside Kaze and, tonight, Nami near Akage.


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

Sai was the second to awake that morning. The weather was beautiful. She yawned loudly drawing Akage's attention.

"Oh." He said surprised, "Morning Sai."

"Morning." She responded.

"You sleep well?" He asked.

"Decently." Sai told him, "I prefer sleeping in trees, but Kaze won't do that with me. Whatever. How'd you sleep?"

"Very well actually, but I was kinda surprised when I woke up." Akage admitted.

"How so?" Sai asked, trying to feign ignorance.

"Well, when I woke up, I found Nami sleeping right beside me. She normally sleeps beside Umi, so it was a little strange." Akage explained.

"Did you not like it?" Sai asked. This made Akage blush.

"No. I thought it was nice. It's just not something I'm used to. My brother and I never really had much chance to make good friends, let alone chase after women. We were too busy running the village, so I really have no clue what to do about this." Akage explained. Sai smiled at him.

"Let me tell you a secret Akage." She said. His ears perked up and his eyes widened a little at this. "She just wants you to be forward with her. Tell her how you feel. Wait for the right moment of course. She'll let you know when she's ready to hear you out." Akage ran his hands through his hair. He was clearly stressed out about this.

"How will I know when she's ready?" Akage asked.

"Trust me. You'll know." Sai assured him, "You saw how I acted with Kaze. Look out for something like that."

"Damn." He cursed, "Women are so complex." Sai giggled and shook her head.

"I guess you could say that." She winked at him and continued getting her things ready for the rest of the day.

After some time, the rest of the group awoke. They ate breakfast and started out for the day. Sai noticed that her wounds hurt a little more than she had expected them to, but it wasn't enough to stop her. It wasn't like she wasn't used to pain. Besides, she had some comedy to watch while she walked to take her mind off the pain. Watching Akage try to figure out what to do with Nami was hilarious. Several times, Sai could not hold it and began to giggle, much to Kaze's confusion. Umi, who had also picked up on Akage and figured out what was going on, told him not to worry about it before joining in with Sai in her giggling. Nami didn't seem to notice any of this. Akage didn't either. After a few hours of walking the group decided to take a break for lunch in a field that was beside the road on which they were traveling. It had a nice flowered hillside to sit on and the sun was shining brightly. Umi brought the food out while Akage used his powers to start the fire. While the food cooked, Sai took Nami aside, out of earshot of the rest of group.

"What are you doing?" Sai asked.

"Huh?" Nami responded, confused, "What are you talking about?"

"Akage! You haven't done anything to give him an opening!" Sai snapped.

"Well, I'm new to this whole steady relationship thing, okay! I don't know what to do." Nami admitted. Sai sighed heavily.

"Okay. Just be yourself alright Nami. Don't try to impress him or anything like that. Just do what you feel like your heart is telling you. That's what Akage wants anyway." Sai told her.

"So I just have to be myself around him? That is not what you told me last night." Nami complained.

"You'll figure out that they match up eventually. That stuff doesn't fit what I normally do either, but it just kinda came naturally with Kaze. That's how it will be for you." Sai explained.

"You sure?" Nami asked, doubtfully.

"Positive." Sai assured her. The two nodded and went back to join the group. Lunch was ready and they ate together, Nami sitting next to Akage. She had decided that she would move in slowly. This would be an introduction for her to advance later.

After lunch, the group returned to the road and continued traveling. Sai sniffed the air in search of the tell-tale scent of a village. She didn't find it.

"Guys." She began, "It looks like we're going to be sleeping outside tonight. There isn't a village for miles."

"Damn." Umi cursed, "I hate sleeping outside."

"I don't know Umi, it's not that bad." Kaze said, "I mean it's kinda nice."

"Shut up Kaze, you're a guy. Men love sleeping outside and all that." Umi said dismissively, "Sai, back me up here."

"I don't really like sleeping on the ground." Sai admitted, "I'm much more fond of trees. The outside isn't all bad."

"Nami?" Umi asked, turning to her sister.

"Can't say it's my favorite thing in the world..." She admitted.

"There we go!" Umi said happily, "What about you Akage?"

"Depends on the company." He responded, looking straight at Nami, who blushed lightly. Umi simply waved off this answer and kept walking. It made Sai laugh.

"Looks like we won that one." Sai remarked. Kaze smiled.

"I guess so." He said, "How are you feeling? Are your wounds alright?"

"Don't worry about me Kaze. I'm fine." Sai tried to tell him.

"I have to worry Sai. You're my fiancé. It's basically in the job description." Kaze said jokingly, "So come on. Do they hurt?"

"A little bit." Sai admitted, "I thought that the pain would be gone by now, but it hasn't all gone away yet."

"You need to stop?" Kaze asked, concerned.

"No, not at all." Sai assured him, "I've been through worse than this by choice. I'd take this over some of the training I did any day." Kaze laughed.

"Yeah, I guess. You're training is a little insane." Kaze told her.

"Hey, I killed a few thousand demons in one strike." Sai whined, "I'd say that it was worth it." Kaze laughed threw up his hands in defeat.

"My wife is strong, what can I say?" He said. Sai punched him lightly in the arm. In response, Kaze began to run her dog ears lightly. Sai shuddered with pleasure.

"Not here." Sai whined, "C'mon Kaze, stop." She was laughing while she said it and so was Kaze. They didn't notice the other three staring at them while they walked. Umi cleared her throat.

"Hey guys." She called out to them, "We're still here..." Kaze stopped rubbing Sai's ears.

"Sorry guys." Sai said.

"Yeah sure." Nami said, giggling. Meanwhile, Akage shot Kaze a look that said, "Nice one, but seriously?" Kaze returned it with a look that just said, "You know you're jealous." This made Akage roll his eyes sarcastically.

The five of them kept walking along the road until the sun began to set. They agreed to camp out that night pretty far off of the road, so that they wouldn't be bothered by pesky night travelers or anything else that walked the roads in the dark. Akage got the fire started and they all ate dinner as group. After dinner, however, Sai and Kaze excused themselves to take a walk and Umi just seemed to disappear. Neither Akage or Nami could find her. They were alone by the fire. Nami knew exactly what this was. They were giving the two time "alone," but were watching from somewhere that no one could see them. That didn't matter to Nami. She wasn't going to let this opportunity pass her by.

"Hey Akage?" Nami said to Akage, who was tending to the fire.

"Yeah? What is it Nami?" He asked.

"I wanted to ask you something." Nami told him.

"Ask me what?" Akage questioned, confused.

"Did... Um... Did you mean what you said?" Nami asked him, blushing lightly.

"What I said when?" Akage inquired.

"A few days ago. It was right after we escaped the cave." Nami explained.

"Oh." Akage said, realizing what she was asking about. His face started to turn red, "Well... Um..."

"You what don't answer that." Nami said quickly, turning her face away from him, "It was a stupid question."

"No it wasn't." Akage said softly.

"What?" Nami said, confused.

"It wasn't a stupid question. It's a question that I should have answered for you days ago." Akage explained, "Nami, I meant each word."

"Akage..." Nami was stunned speechless.

"I know that we haven't known each other for long, but I just feel drawn to you." Akage told her, "Ever since I first saw you, when you and the others arrived in my village to save us, I've felt that way. I know it probably sounds crazy, but everything that we've been through together since then has reaffirmed that. I want to get to know you, spend time with you, comfort you, and just be there for you. Love at first sight is something I never believed in. That is, until I met you." Nami didn't know what to say. She just stated at Akage. He felt the exact same way that she did. Nami didn't know how that was possible, but she was glad of it. However, those words wouldn't form in her mouth.

"If you don't feel the same way, I'll understand." Akage said after a few moments of silence.

"No!" Nami yelled, louder than she had meant to. It startled Akage. Nami lowered her voice and kept talking, "Akage, I feel the exact same way. I just haven't known how to tell you. My entire life, I've been the promiscuous girl along with my sister. I've never wanted to settle down or be with just one person, but that's changed. You're the reason that it's changed. I want something lasting now, as long as it's with you. I can't explain it, but you make me feel... Different... Better." Akage smiled and stood up. He walked over to where she was and sat by her, putting his arm around her shoulders. Nami leaned her head against his shoulder.

"Well, I guess there's a new couple in the group." Nami said in a quiet, joking tone.

"Yeah, I guess so." Akage said laughing.

"Okay!" Nami yelled out into the woods, "You guys can come out now!"

"Not until you two kiss!" Came Sai's voice.

"Really Sai? Really?" Nami complained.

"KISS! KISS! KISS!" The three of them chanted in unison.

"Dammit." Nami cursed in a defeated voice.

"Well... I guess we kinda have to give them what they want..." Akage pointed out.

"Yeah I guess so." Nami agreed. She turned around to face him and then leaned in until their lips met. Nami made it passionate. Almost excessively so. Akage was surprised at first at how much Nami was putting into this, but he played along. The other three cheered as it went on and exited the woods. Nami finally broke away.

"You happy now?" Nami asked.

"Yup." Umi said simply, plopping herself down by the fire.

"Revenge sucks, don't it?" Sai said mischievously, sitting down with Kaze opposite from Nami and Akage.

"But I would do it again in a heartbeat." Nami shot back with a sarcastic smile. Kaze looked at Akage.

"Sorry man." He said shrugging, "Wasn't my idea." Sai elbowed him lightly in the ribs, laughing good heartedly at the comment.

"Yeah, yeah..." Akage said dismissively.

"So I guess I'm the last single person in the group." Umi said cheerfully, "I feel accomplished."

"We'll find you someone Umi." Sai joked, "I won't let you stay single even if you want to."

"C'mon Sai." Umi whined, "Don't do that to me, please."

"I don't know Umi." Nami said, "The couple life doesn't seem that bad. I think I'm gonna like it."

"Whatever sis." Umi said, waving off the comment, "I'll stay the way I am and be happy about it. I'm a strong, independent woman and I don't need a man." Everyone, including Umi, laughed at this. They were going to have fun with this.

The group spent about another hour talking before going to bed. The night was cool, but not too cold. Akage's fire helped to keep anyone from feeling a chill. Sai won out over Kaze tonight and they were sleeping together, Sai in Kaze's lap, in the trees. Nami and Akage slept at the base of the tree and Umi slept by the fire. Akage's birds of fire would take the watch tonight. These birds, however, did not have good senses. They didn't notice the two pairs of red eyes staring at them from the darkness of the forest.


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

Kiretsu and Mageru stood at the edge of the forest. They knew full well that the fire birds summoned by the half-demon called Akage did not know that they were there. The two simply observed the group sleep for a few minutes before slipping away deeper into the forest. They reached their cave after a short run and say down to discuss their plan.

"So," Mageru began, "You really think that we should do this?"

"It's the only way to figure out if they are the ones we need." Kiretsu told.

"They're just kids!" Mageru said.

"We were kids once too." Kiretsu pointed out, "You remember what we were doing then?" Mageru simply nodded, trying to keep the images from flooding back.

"Fine." He conceded, "But we make this painless for them if they fail."

"No promises, but we'll try." Kiretsu promised. The two nodded said their goodbyes for the time being and headed their separate ways to make preparations. Time is a delicate thing to play with.

Sai awoke that morning in Kaze's lap, just as she had gone to sleep the night before. She sniffed the air. A strange scent was faint in the air, but she was sure that whatever it came from was long gone. She woke Kaze and they jumped down from the tree to join the others who were already making breakfast.

"Nice of you two to join us." Akage remarked jokingly.

"Yeah whatever." Kaze shot back, "So, what's the plan for today?"

"Well, I had an idea about that actually." Sai said.

"What is it Sai?" Nami asked.

"Well..." She began, "Kaze and I are getting married, so I figured that we should at least let our parents know."

"Sai that's going to take forever." Umi complained, "They've probably already moved back to the village. Sesshomaru's patience isn't that long, even if he is expecting a child with Rin."

"No I've thought this one out." Sai assured her, "I can run all the way there and so can Akage. You guys can travel on Akage's birds."

"It's not a bad plan." Akage agreed, "We'd be at your village by the end of the day."

"You sure you can keep birds going that long?" Kaze asked.

"Yeah." Akage said, laughing off the question, "I've done a lot crazier things. Keeping three birds in the sky while I run isn't that difficult of a task."

"Hey Akage, this means that you can meet my parents." Nami pointed out.

"Alright then." Sai said happily, "Let's head home." The group agreed.

Sai and Akage took off at a run. Their pace would have killed any normal human, but it was pretty easy for them. The other three would have been able to keep up for a few hours, but after that they wouldn't be able to move for a few days, so they were in the sky flying on Akage's birds. Sai wished that they traveled like this everywhere since it was so much faster, but the constant strain on Akage wouldn't be fair. He put on a strong face for this, but Sai knew that multiple days of this would be very taxing. Thankfully, though, they were making progress faster than Sai thought try would. The group was passing Sesshomaru's castle by just after midday. Umi had been right. Her village was no longer living there anymore. They simply kept going towards where they had been attacked so long ago. If they kept going like this, then they would arrive before dinner was served.

Akage kept conversation with Sai lively the entire time. All he seemed to want to talk about was Nami. It seemed that he was doing his best to find out everything he could about her. Sai knew her better than anyone, except for maybe Umi, and was less likely to tell Nami about the questioning, so Sai was the best choice. His questions ranged from what her favorite food was to what made her happy when she was irritated and everything in between. Sai answered them all. She really wanted this relationship to succeed. After all, she wanted her friend to be happy and settle down with someone that would do that for her. Akage seemed to be the best bet in that regard.

The group kept going for a few more hours and the village came into view from the air just before the sun began to set. They arrived within the hour. Akage called the birds down to land as they approached the outskirts. Inuyasha, Kagome, Sango, and Miroku were all waiting for them. Sai never stopped running. She ran straight to her parents and took them into a massive hug.

"MOM! DAD!" She yelled delightedly, "I missed you so much!"

"We missed you too Sai." Her mother said, tears coming to her eyes.

"We're just glad that you're okay." Her father said, emotion creeping even into his voice. A similar, tearful reunion was happening with Miroku and Sango's family. They had been waiting expectantly for hours. Inuyasha had caught their scent while they were still a long way off. Nami introduced Akage to her parents as her boyfriend and he was quickly welcomed into the family reunion. Sai and Kaze would save their news for dinner that night, which Kagome had already prepared and suggested that they all go and eat together.

The feast that Kagome had prepared was massive. It was obvious that Inuyasha and Miroku had hunted extensively to get all the food and that Kagome and Sango had spent every moment cooking it. Every morsel was delicious. Their parents could not stop asking questions. They seemed to want to know everything. Even Sai's father was showing quite a bit of interest.

"So you fight anything worth a damn?" Inuyasha asked during the meal.

"We've had a few battles that I guess could fit that description." Sai told him.

"Are you kidding me Sai?" Umi burst, "You've nearly been killed on multiple occasions!"

"What?!" Kagome yelled, worried, "Sai what happened?"

"Well we kinda ran into the emperor and his true army..." Sai said.

"What do you mean?" Sango asked, realizing that there was more to it than what she had said.

"The emperor isn't human." Sai began. This stunned the parents at the table, "He's a powerful demon named Konton that had massive armies of demons under his control. His goal with the purges is to rid the world of demons that oppose him or are more powerful and he's willing to use humans to accomplish that goal."

"That's sick!" Inuyasha growled, "Did he hurt you?" Sai proceeded to tell him the entire story of their first encounter with Konton and their battle against his demons. The others jumped in constantly with details that Sai left out.

"This is very disturbing news." Miroku said, troubled, "Do you have any idea how to defeat Konton?"

"Yes actually." Nami jumped in. She proceeded to tell them about their encounter with the old man and their search for the embodiment of love.

"Do you know of any way to find this object?" Sango asked.

"No, but we do have this." Kaze said, reaching into his bag and pulling out a sheet of paper. He handed it to his parents who shared it with Inuyasha and Kagome. After they had gotten a look at it, he kept talking, "That's the symbol that was left when the old man disappeared. It's our only lead."

"Hmm..." Miroku said, thoughtfully, "This is troubling. However, we should not worry about these things now. This is a time for celebration! Let us be happy and rejoice that you are all alright!"

"I'll drink to that!" Inuyasha called out. Everyone else agreed as well and continued with dinner. The spent the rest of the meal laughing and telling happy stories.

After about another hour, everyone had finished with dinner. All of them were simply sitting around the table talking while the fire died. Suddenly, Sai got up and motioned Kaze to join her. They stood together in front of everyone.

"Mom, dad, Aunt Sango, Uncle Miroku, we have an announcement to make." Sai said happily. She paused and scanned her parents expectant and curious faces and the knowing smiles of her friends, "We're getting married!"

"WHAT?!" All of them shouted in unison. The parents immediately got up and ran to embrace their children.

"Oh Sai, that's wonderful!" Kagome said.

"Is that why you guys came back?" Sango asked. Sai blushed.

"Just a little bit." She admitted. After a few more minutes of hugging, congratulations, and assorted tearful comments about how they "grew up so fast," they all asked the same question,

"When will the wedding be?"

"Well we don't really have any idea." Kaze told them, embarrassed.

"Well, son, that just won't do." Miroku said matter-of-factly, "You'll have to have it here. I'm thinking probably about two weeks from now would be a good time." Sai and Kaze's jaws dropped.

"Two weeks from now?" Sai asked incredulously.

"Why not?" Inuyasha asked.

"It seems like as good a time as any." Kagome pointed.

"It just seems a little... soon." Kaze said.

"Don't worry Kaze." Sango said cheerily, "We'll have everything ready by then."

"Great..." Sai and Kaze said, doing their best, which wasn't very good, to feign excitement. However, their parents didn't catch on and beamed. Then Inuyasha walked up to Kaze and looked him straight on the eyes, a serious expression on his face.

"You take care of my daughter, alright." He commanded.

"Yes sir." Kaze said, nodding his head, "I'll protect her with my life." A smile broke out across Inuyasha's face.

"Well then, welcome to the family!" He said loudly, taking Kaze into bear hug. Kagome followed in the welcome, though, a little toned down. Miroku and Sango did the same for Sai.

After a while, everyone started to head home to get some sleep. It had gotten late and they would need the rest. Sai slept in her house, while Kaze, Umi, Nami, and Akage all slept in Miroku and Sango's house. Inuyasha and Kagome stood over their sleeping daughter.

"Our little girl is growing up so fast." Kagome said.

"Yeah." Inuyasha agreed, "She's not so little anymore. Taking on thousands of demons and getting married aren't things that little girls concern themselves with. She's a woman now and I'm proud of her."

"I am too." Kagome said, clinging onto Inuyasha. A thought hit Kagome, "Hey Inuyasha?"

"Yeah?" He said.

"You know... It's been a while..." She told him.

"Since what?" He asked, confused.

"Oh you know..." She said, winking. Kagome took him by the hand and led him to the bedroom, Inuyasha catching on to what she meant.

Sai awoke late the next morning. The sun was already shining brightly in the sky and her parents were nowhere to be found. Sai yawned loudly, then got up and got dressed. She went to eat breakfast and found a plate of food had been laid out for her. It had a note by it. It read,

"Sai, meet me by the well. Your father and Miroku left to go slay a demon and earn some money to pay for the wedding. We'll have a mother-daughter day today!" Sai laughed.

"Oh mom," She said to herself, "you're the best." Sai quickly ate breakfast and went to the well. She left her swords behind since she wouldn't need them. If there was any danger, she could summon her other weapons or just use her claws. Nothing around here was all that strong anyway.

Sai found her mother sitting on the well waiting for her. She turned her head up as she heard Sai's footsteps.

"Sai!" Kagome cried cheerily, "You're a late sleeper." Sai laughed.

"Well I ran all day yesterday to get here. I figured I could use the sleep." Sai told her.

"I guess so." Her mother said, getting up. Kagome got up off the well and walked over to Sai and hugged her, "I'm just glad you're back in one piece."

"With a fiancé no less." Sai joked. Kagome laughed.

"I must say I wasn't expecting that one." Her mother said, breaking away from the hug, "That's actually why I wanted you to come here. I wanted to talk to you about that."

"What is it mom?" Sai asked.

"I figured that you should hear my story." Kagome told her, "Your father and I don't talk about it much, but now that you're getting married, I figured that you should know."

"What does the well have to do with that?" Sai asked, "I mean, I know that it's how you came to this world, but what else does it have to do with anything?"

"This well means a lot to me and I'll tell you why you owe everything to it." Kagome led her daughter over to the well, "You're right that this well is how I first came to this world. You know that I traveled back and forth between the two periods of time with your father when we traveled fighting Naraku, but have you ever stopped to wonder why I haven't gone back? My family is there, yet I haven't gone back once. Why do you think that is?"

"I never really thought about it. Is it because you have family here?" Sai asked.

"That's part of it, but the main reason is because I can't. I can't go back to my own time and see my family." Kagome told her, sadness creeping into her voice.

"Why?" Sai asked her mother, "Why can't you go back?"

"It's fairly complex, but essentially, it's because the Shikon Jewel no longer exists." Kagome told her, "When we defeated Naraku, I made the jewel disappear. Inuyasha and I popped out on the other side of time from the void that we were in. I was so happy that we had won, but a few moments after we had arrived, Inuyasha was pulled back into the well and it closed. I was trapped in the future, separated from your father. However, after three years of desperately wishing that I could go back to be with your father, the well finally reopened for one last time. It allowed me to come back and be with your father, to live here again, and to have you."

"Mom that's incredible. I never knew that." Sai said.

"I know." Kagome told her daughter, "I don't really like to talk about it all that much. It's painful to think about those three years where I couldn't be with your father. They were the worst years of my life." Sai nodded and looked down at the well.

"So it's closed forever?" Sai asked.

"Yes." Kagome said softly.

"I wouldn't be so sure." Came a voice from behind them. The voice laughed. Sai and her mother whirled around to face the sound, Sai flexing her claws.

"Who are you?" Kagome demanded.

"Someone who must test your daughter and her friends." The voice said. Then a blur rushed from the edge of the woods and slammed into Sai sending her flying back into the well. A massive flash of white light shot from the mouth of the well and suddenly Sai was gone.

"SAI!" Kagome screamed, "SAI!"


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

500 years in the future

Sai awoke late that morning. She rose out of her bed and stretched, yawning loudly. It was Sunday and she had plans to go out shopping with her friends, but she had a terrible headache for some reason. If it didn't go away soon, she might have to cancel. She decided to go downstairs and get breakfast and some painkillers from her mother.

"Hey mom." Sai called out.

"Yes dear?" She replied from the kitchen where she was preparing food.

"Do we have any painkillers?" Sai asked, "I woke up with a massive headache this morning."

"Were you out partying last night?" Her mother asked, getting a bottle from the cabinet and handing it to Sai.

"No mom." Sai told her, exasperated, "I was home by 10, like always. You saw that I was fine last night."

"Okay Sai. I was just making sure." Her mother said going back to cooking, "You still going out with your friends today?"

"Yeah." Sai said, sitting down at the table, "As long as this headache goes away in the next two hours."

"Alright. When you go, be careful and be smart." Her mother warned.

"We will mom." Sai told her mother, obviously tired of being treated like a kid, "Don't worry about us." Sai's mother served breakfast and Sai scarfed it down. She didn't know why, but she was extremely hungry this morning. It was like she hadn't eaten in years.

A couple hours later, Sai was walking to where she had agreed to meet her friends. Her headache had subsided and allowed her to come. She chose to wear jeans with a pink hoodie that day since it was a little cold outside. Sai hated the fall, but she had to deal with it. She met her friends at the predetermined spot and greeted them happily.

"Late as always, Sai." Akari said, laughing.

"Whatever." Sai said back, laughing with her.

"Hey." Noemi Interjected, "Let's get going."

"Yeah, seriously." Hinata agreed.

"Alright, fine." Sai said. Sai and Akari gathered themselves and the group headed off to the mall.

They spent the next few hours shopping. Each of them ended up with a couple bags of new clothes before they went to the food court to get something to eat before heading home to put all their new stuff away and get started on the massive amount of homework that they all had. They sat down with their food and began to eat and talk. Sai finished quickly and got up to go to the bathroom before they left. Before she had taken three steps, something caught Sai's eye. There was a boy across the large room sitting with two girls, probably his sisters by the look of them. Sai knew that she had never met this boy, but she felt like she knew him and, oddly, she felt drawn to him. Something in her desperately wanted to go talk to him. Suddenly, a flash of white hot pain shot through Sai's head. It was pure agony and made Sai drop to her knees holding her head and moaning slightly. Her friends immediately got up and came to her aid.

"Sai!" Akari yelled out in a worried voice, "Are you alright? What's wrong?"

"My head." Sai groaned, "My head hurts so bad. I feel like I'm going to-". At that moment, Sai fell over, unconscious. The boy across the room looked over, concerned.

Kaze had never seen the girl that was lying unconscious on the floor in his life. The weird thing was, though, that this girl's pain made him extremely sad. Two paramedics that were in the food court rushed to the girl's aid. Her nose had started to bleed profusely. Something was seriously wrong with her and the medics were calling for an ambulance.

"What's wrong with that girl?" Kaze asked his sisters.

"I'm not sure." Nami said.

"I don't know either." Umi agreed, "But what I do know is that before she dropped, she gave you the weirdest look. You know her?"

"Never seen her before in my life." Kaze told them, "But for some reason I feel really bad about what's happening to her. More than I feel like I should for a stranger."

"Yeah I got that too actually." Umi said.

"Me too." Nami chimed in, "That's really weird."

"They're taking her to the hospital. I'm going to go visit her once they've got her settled." Kaze told them, "I want to figure out who she is."

"You do what you want." Nami said dismissively, "There are plenty of cute guys to keep us company." Kaze rolled his eyes and got up. By the time he walked to the hospital, the nurses would probably have the girl settled and he would be able to see her. Kaze wanted to figure out who she was, but that really wasn't the main reason that he was going. The real reason was because he felt like he was supposed to go see her for some reason. It was a feeling he couldn't ignore.

Sai had awoken in the hospital about an hour ago. Her parents had just left to let her rest. They had come as soon as they had gotten the call from the hospital. None of the doctors knew what had happened to her, but they were running blood tests at that very moment to try to figure it out. Suddenly, Sai heard a knock on the door.

"Yeah?" Sai called out.

"You've got a visitor." Came a nurse's voice.

"Who is it?" Sai asked.

"He won't say." The nurse responded, "He said that you'd know him when you saw him." This confused Sai. She didn't understand why anyone would hide their identity from her.

"Okay." Sai said after a moment, "Let him in." The door opened and a boy walked through. The door closed behind him. Sai's jaw dropped. It was that boy.

"It-it's... It's you..." Sai stammered.

"You know me?" The boy questioned.

"No." Sai told him, "I have no idea who you are, but I feel like I should. Plus I got this headache as soon as I saw you."

"What?" Kaze asked, confused, "Why would that be?"

"I have no idea." Sai admitted, "I was hoping that you could tell me."

"Sorry I can't." Kaze told her, "I don't even know who you are."

"Why are you here then? No offense, but I just don't get it." Sai said bluntly.

"Neither do I." Kaze said, "I just felt like I was supposed to come. I couldn't really fight it." Sai blushed. She didn't know why, but she couldn't help it. This boy was... special to her. He kept talking, "So are you alright?"

"I think so. Being stuck in here kinda sucks, though." Sai said. Then a thought hit her, "Hey. What's your name?"

"Kaze." He told her simply. As the last syllable left his mouth, a flood of emotions, thoughts, and images ran through her mind. None of them made any sense, but they all seemed familiar. They were almost more real than her actual memories, but that couldn't be right. These were full of demons, war, and this boy. Kaze noticed her glazed over eyes.

"Hey!" He shouted, "Hey! Are you okay?" Sai snapped back to reality.

"Um... Yeah..." Sai lied, "Just zoned out for a second."

"Don't do that." Kaze said, relieved, "You worried me."

"You were worried about me?" Sai asked, happiness unexplainably flooding her. Kaze blushed.

"Uh... Yeah... I didn't want you... um... passing out again." Kaze admitted, "Hey. I've told you my name. What's yours?"

"My name's Saiai." She told him. The boy's eyes glazed over just like hers had. Like she had expected, the same thing that happened to her was happening to him now. The images were hitting him.

"Sai?" He said, confused.

"You just called me by my nickname. How did you know that?" Sai demanded.

"I don't know." Kaze said honestly, "I just kinda knew."

"That's really weird." Sai said starting to get a little scared. It showed in her voice. Kaze grabbed her hand tightly, surprising Sai. There was an intense look in his eyes.

"Hey." He said, "Don't be scared. You're gonna be okay." Then his eyes softened and darted to where his hand was over Sai's. He blushed heavily and immediately removed it. "Sorry. I don't know why I did that. I-" Sai cut him off.

"Don't apologize." Sai said bluntly, "It was... Nice..." They say there awkwardly for a few moments until Sai broke the silence. "Hey Kaze?"

"Yeah?" He responded.

"We only just met, but we obviously know each other from somewhere. I have no idea what that's supposed to mean, but I think we were really close. The second I heard your name, my heart skipped a beat. All of these emotions and images, I guess they're memories, about you flooded my head then too. You knew my nickname and you comforted me by instinct. None of that makes any sense unless we know each other."

"I get what you're saying. I got the same flood of stuff when you told me your name. The problem is, I know for a fact that I've never met you before." Kaze told her.

"Then why are you here?" Sai asked bluntly. Kaze couldn't answer. He didn't know, especially not anymore. Sai nodded and continued, "I don't remember you either, but something is obviously going on. If we stay together, we might figure it out."

"Hmm..." Kaze said, pondering the situation, "But whatever is making us forget all of this stuff, couldn't it be dangerous?"

"It probably is." Sai admitted, "But we don't know that for a fact and I need to know. Plus, I don't think I could stop myself from being with you. I feel... Drawn to you."

"Same." Kaze agreed. Then a thought hit him, "Hey Sai. My sisters were in those memories. You think they have anything to do with this?"

"Probably." Sai told him, "They were in mine too."

"I'm going to bring them here. Maybe they can help us figure this out once we get them to start remembering things." Kaze turned around and started to walk towards the door.

"Hey!" Sai called out, stopping Kaze in his tracks, "Don't be gone too long okay." Kaze smiled.

"I promise. I'll be back soon." And with that he left.

Kaze's mind was reeling. What that girl, Sai, had said made perfect sense. It shouldn't have. It should have sounded purely ridiculous. People don't just have their memories erased and replaced. Plus, all of the other stuff was full of demons and death. Why would he want to go back to that, even if it was real? But then Kaze thought about the last memories he'd gotten glimpses of. They were of him and Sai, happy together. The way he felt when he saw those was unexplainable, but he did know one thing. Whoever he really was, he loved that girl and she loved him.

Kaze arrived at his house and burst through the door calling for his sisters.

"Nami! Umi! Get down here!" Kaze yelled out.

"What?!" Nami called back, worry clear in her voice as she rushed down the stairs with her sister right behind her, "What's wrong?"

"It's that girl we saw in the mall, the one that passed out and got taken to the hospital." Kaze said urgently.

"What?" Umi said confused, "What about her?"

"We know her." Kaze said bluntly.

"There's no way Kaze." Nami said, "I've never seen that girl in my life. Just calm down and tell us what is going on."

"We do know her!" Kaze yelled back, "That's the thing. We just can't remember that we do! She is having the same problem! She passed out because she saw me and it was too much of a shock to her body."

"Kaze, you're not making any sense." Umi said, starting to get worried about her brother's sanity.

"Just come see her with me." Kaze begged, "I promise, the second she tells you her name, things will start coming back to you. It happened to me." The sisters begrudgingly agreed, only for the sake of hopefully showing Kaze that he was being crazy, and Kaze rushed them off to where Sai was.

Sai was getting worried. She had told herself not to, but she couldn't help it. Kaze had been gone so long. Sai laughed to herself. She was worried like a wife about a guy that she didn't even know. But she did know him. And she deep down, she knew that she loved him. The worst part about, though, was she didn't know why.

The nurse's voice came from behind the door.

"Miss, that boy is here again. This time he has two girls with him, though. He says that they are his sisters." A flood of relief washed over Sai.

"Let them in, please." She called to the nurse. The door opened and the three familiar faces stepped through it. It closed behind them.

"Hey guys." Sai said, "Longtime, no see." This made Kaze chuckle, but the sisters seemed weirded out.

"Hey..." Nami began, "Okay. Kaze explained some of this stuff on the way over, but none of it makes sense. Apparently, none of this is our real lives and you're supposed to have dog ears and fangs. Thing is, though, I've lived her my whole life and I've got the memories to prove it. And nobody has damn dog ears. This has gotta be some big delusion, so let's get this over with and solved."

"Ask me my name." Sai said simply.

"What?" Nami said, taken off guard.

"Ask me my name." Sai repeated. Nami rolled her eyes, but eventually conceded.

"What's your name?" Nami asked.

"My name is Sai." She told them. Then the twins dropped to their knees. Their eyes were glazed over. It was working. It was happening to them too. After a few moments, they came to their senses again.

"What the hell?" Umi whispered to herself.

"Told ya." Kaze said.

"So what are your names?" Sai asked the sisters. They got up slowly before answering.

"I'm Nami." One said.

"And I'm Umi." Said the other. Then the flood of memories and emotions hit Sai again. Everything was starting to come together. Things started to piece themselves together in her head as the memories kept coming. Eventually they stopped and Sai came back to reality. Sai shook her head to get her bearings back. They still had to find one more person.


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter 25

Akage was walking down the empty street. It was getting late and he had to get home. As the sun was setting, Akage reached the apartment that he lived in alone. He walked in and felt the emptiness of the apartment. Akage had been an orphan for a long as he could remember. His brother had left about a month ago and Akage hadn't heard from him since. He'd had to drop out of school since then and start working to pay rent and buy food. He shook the thoughts from his mind and walked to the refrigerator to get something to drink. As he began to take a sip from the can of soda he'd grabbed, there came a knock on the door. That was strange. Akage hadn't been expecting anyone. He walked to the door and looked through the peephole. Outside his door stood four kids about his age. A cute girl in jeans and a pink hoodie, a guy in jeans and a t-shirt, and two absolutely gorgeous twins in jeans. One was wearing a purple hoodie, while the other was wearing a blue one. All of them looked familiar, but he didn't know from where.

"Who are you guys?" Akage called through the door. The girl in the pink answered.

"Akage, we know that you don't know us, but we know you and we have to tell you something." She said. Akage could sense the urgency in her voice.

"How do I know that I can trust you guys?" Akage asked, suspicious.

"You don't." The girl admitted, "But you will. Ask me my name."

"What?" Akage asked, "Why would your name make me trust you?" The girl in the purple hoodie answered this time.

"Please Akage." The girl begged, "Just ask her what her name is." Something in the girl's voice struck a cord in Akage's heart. Something in him needed to listen to her. He paused for a moment. Then he spoke.

"Fine. What's your name?"

"My name is Saiai." She said. Akage's head exploded with images. Memories of this girl and the people she was with. Memories of demons and death. Emotions that he'd never felt before. All of these flooded his mind all at once. He dropped to his knees. A few moments passed.

"Akage?" Sai called out, "You alright?"

"Yeah." Akage said slowly, "Yeah, I'm good." He stood up and unlocked the door. Nami burst through and hugged him tightly. She didn't say anything, but she didn't need to. The rest of the group walked in as Nami broke away from Akage. They greeted each other as if they'd known each other for a long time. Akage led them to the living room of the apartment where he had some places to sit. After everyone had seated themselves, Akage spoke up.

"Ok guys, what the hell is going?" He asked, "I've got two conflicting sources of memories floating around in my head right now. I want to know why."

"So do we." Kaze pointed out, "But we have no idea what we're looking for. All we've got to go on is one memory from Sai. Apparently something pushed her into a well. As far as we can tell, that's her last memory of before and it's what caused her, and maybe us, to be here."

"So something is after us?" Akage asked.

"Yeah." Sai said, "From what we can tell from these memories, it's a demon."

"Dammit!" Akage cursed, punching his chair, "This is insane!"

"It doesn't end there." Nami said.

"What?" Akage asked, incredulously, "How could there be more to this? This is-"

"Akage." Sai interjected, "You and I are half-demons." Akage was stunned into silence. "It's crazy I know, but that's what these memories say. Supposedly I'm half dog demon and you're half phoenix demon."

"What the hell is this?" Akage shouted, "What are we supposed to do with all of this information? We've been flooded with a lifetime of random images and emotions and, somehow, we've gotta piece all of this together and do something about it. How?" No one answered. Nobody knew or even had the slightest idea. Akage sighed, trying to calm down.

"I'm sorry guys." He said, "I know you guys don't know anymore than I do. It's just that this is really frustrating." Everyone nodded.

"We get it." Umi said, "We want to know what's going on too. This is all really confusing."

"All we can do is stick together and wait for something to happen." Sai pointed out.

"What should we do about our parents?" Nami asked, "They'll worry about us. Especially you Sai. You're missing from the hospital."

"Hell if know." Sai admitted, "What I do know is that this seems a little more important."

"True enough." Kaze said, "But we can't just sit and wait, we need to do something."

"Like what Kaze?" Nami asked.

"We've gotta find this well that Sai came through." Kaze said.

"What? How do we even know it still exists?" Akage demanded.

"If that well is the link between the two worlds, then the other end has to exist somewhere." Kaze explained, "So really our only option is to ask around looking for a well with strange properties."

"Kaze that could take forever." Umi pointed out.

"It's better than doing nothing." Kaze said.

"But-" Umi started before Sai cut her off.

"Guys!" She said excitedly, "I think I know a well we could try!"

"That's amazing!" Nami cried, "What's it called?"

"If I remember right, it's called the Bone-Eater's Well." Sai said, "There's some crazy legend about things disappearing through it. I feel like my mom was telling me about it not all that long ago."

"That's as good a place as any to start." Akage said, "Let's go!"

"Hold on." Umi said, "It's getting dark outside. We should at least wait until morning."

"She's right." Nami agreed, "We're not prepared to deal with whatever is there to begin with, let alone at night."

"True." Akage said, "Alright, I guess we're all sleeping here tonight." Everyone nodded. Akage got up and raided his fridge. He got everyone something to eat and then flipped on the massive flat screen tv that he and his brother had stolen a few months ago. No one really seemed to care about that at this point anyway.

A few hours passed. All of them talked. They were trying to figure out who they were and who they were in relation to everyone else. No one really got anywhere. Sai and Kaze tended to gravitate towards each other, though, until eventually she was sitting in his lap with his arms around her. The same thing happened with Akage and Nami, though, they settled just to be next to each other. Umi just sat in front of the tv watching the news. She was the first to fall asleep. Then Sai and Nami followed until it was just Kaze and Akage awake. Kaze started laughing.

"What's so funny?" Akage asked.

"It's just that everything has changed so quickly in our lives." He said, "Before today, my life was normal and boring. Now I find out that I'm in the middle of this whole world switch-up thing. I broke up with my last girlfriend two months ago and never thought I'd fall in love. Now I've got this beautiful girl in my arms that I just met, yet I fell like she's my wife or something."

"I gotcha." Akage said, starting to chuckle along at the absurdity of it all, "My life has been crazy. My brother and I have always had to fend for ourselves, but he left about a month ago. Ever since then, it's just been me. Now all of you are here. I've never had a girl that gave a damn about me and now I've got Nami."

"I really hope that we find something at this well tomorrow." Kaze said hopefully, "Maybe it can explain all of this."

"Yeah, I do too." Akage agreed, "But we should get some sleep. We're probably going to need it." Kaze nodded and the two eventually drifted off to sleep.

Kiretsu and Mageru sat on the roof of Akage's apartment building. The moon was high in the sky and the air was cool.

"Damn." Mageru said in surprise, "Those kids worked all of this out faster than we thought."

"Yes, but the most difficult part of the test is still to come." Kiretsu pointed out.

"Do we really need to put them through that?" Mageru asked, "I mean, I think they've proven themselves enough."

"If they want to defeat Konton, then they'll need to discover their inner abilities and the quickest way to do that is by following our plan."

"Fine, but if they die, it's on you." Mageru said, standing up. Kiretsu followed.

"I know, brother." He said, "But I'm counting on them surviving." And with that, they disappeared into the night.


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter 26

Sai was the last to awake that morning. Everyone was up and preparing for the day, though preparation was not a good word to describe it. The scene was more like four teenagers fumbling around to try to convince themselves that they were getting ready. Sai didn't feel like joining in. She got up and looked for Akage. She found him in the kitchen searching for something.

"Hey Akage." She said. He whirled around to face her.

"Damn." He cursed, "You startled me."

"Sorry about that." Sai said yawning, "You got a shower in here somewhere?"

"Yeah. Down the hall and to the right." He told her. Sai thanked him and walked that way.

In the bathroom, she stripped down and left her clothes lying on the floor. The water in the shower got hot quick, which she was thankful for. It was obvious that the others had either already taken showers or just weren't planning to, so she could take as long as she wanted, so she did. Sai needed the time to relax and think more than anything else. She still needed to process everything that was going on. Her entire life had just been flipped on its head. Apparently, she wasn't from this world, all of her memories weren't real, she was a half-demon, and, to top it all off, she was in love. Sai didn't think that it could get much worse, but she had a feeling that it would.

A half-hour later, Sai finished her shower and dried off. She got redressed and then walked back to the living room. Everyone else had just sat down to discuss things, so Sai walked over to where Kaze was and joined him.

"So what's the plan?" She asked.

"Well, right now, we haven't got much of one." Nami admitted.

"All we know is where there well is and how to get there. We have no idea what's gonna be there or how to fight it." Akage said.

"That's a start, right?" Sai said, trying to encourage all of them, "We don't need to know what's there. Apparently, we're some strong demon fighting team, so we are gonna be fine."

"Sai's right." Kaze agreed, "We're gonna be fine." Everyone nodded their agreement.

"Alright then." Sai said, "Let's head to Higurashi Shrine and see if we can figure out what's going on."

Soon after, the five left the apartment. The sun was shining brightly and the weather was warmer than it had been the day before. The shrine wasn't far from Akage's apartment and they reached it after only about fifteen minutes of walking. They were met at the bottom of the steps to the shrine complex by a middle aged man. When the man saw them, saw Sai, his eyes widened in surprise, but he quickly hid this and changed his expression back to one without emotion. They noticed, however.

"Hey Sai." Nami whispered, "Did you see that? How that guy looked at you?"

"Yeah." Sai whispered back, nodding, "It was kinda weird."

"You know," Nami said, "He kinda looks like you. It's almost like you're related."

"That's impossible." Sai said dismissively.

"Considering everything else that's happened in the past two days, I'd say anything is possible." Nami pointed out. Sai didn't answer.

The group approached the man. Nami was right. The man did look similar to Sai. Their facial structure was almost completely the same. He spoke first.

"Welcome." He said, his face unchanging, "I've been expecting you."

"What?" Kaze asked apprehensively, "Why?"

"What do you know about us?" Umi demanded.

"All will be answered in time." The man said, turning around, "But for now, follow me." That last sentence seemed to pain him to say, but the group could not see his face to be sure.

"At least tell us your name!" Sai yelled at him as he started to walk away. He stopped in his tracks.

"My name is Souta." He told them and then kept walking. Sai shrugged, not recognizing the name, and the group followed him up the stairs. He led them into the middle of the courtyard. The man turned around to face them. He smiled sadly.

"Good luck." He said. At that moment, the courtyard opened up beneath their feet. All of them screamed as they fell into the oppressive darkness. The fall wasn't long, but all of them were knocked unconscious by the impact.

Sai awoke in the dark. Silence permeated the area around her. She was alone.

"Where are the others?" Sai thought, "There's no way that they would leave me. They know we need to stick together." Sai got up off the ground slowly. Her head hurt immensely. She put her hand to where the pain was coming from. Her hand came away warm, wet, and sticky. The hair in the area was matted with the thick liquid.

"Damn." Sai cursed aloud. She was bleeding badly as her head was still swimming from the impact. She had no idea what time it was or where the hell she was. Getting out was going to be next to impossible. Lifted her right arm and tried to feel her way out. Her hand hit a wall. The wall was smooth, hard, dry just like everything else in the area she was in. She walked forward cautiously, feeling her way along the wall. It was strange. The darkness didn't seem to be so dark anymore. It was like she was getting used to the amount of light, but that was impossible. There was no light in the place. She bit her cheek nervously. Her mouth filled with blood.

"Dammit!" She cursed, "What the hell?" She opened her mouth and felt her teeth. They were sharp and she had fangs. Her eyes widened in surprise. She started to panic. She wasn't supposed to have fangs. Sai ran her hands through her hair from the stress. Her fingers met something soft and fluffy. Something like... Ears. Dog ears.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!" Sai screamed into the ever brightening darkness. She fully panicking now. The wound on her head and in her mouth had healed, she had fangs and dog ears, and her eyesight and night vision had improved immensely.

Sai took off at a run down the hallway. She could see perfectly now even though the amount of light hadn't changed. The pace she was hitting wasn't human. It would have cut world records in half.

"Dammit! Dammit! Dammit!" Sai thought to herself, "What is happening to me?" Then it hit her. She slid to a stop, squeaking loudly across the floor. Sai stood still for a second before dropping to her knees in despair. She slammed her fist into the floor as hard as she could making it crack beneath the force.

"I'm a half-demon..." She said in defeated voice, "I'm a damn half-demon." Tears came to her eyes and fell to the floor. She was sobbing. Nothing was right. Nothing at all. The thing that didn't make sense, though, was that Sai had never felt more in the right, more herself. It was as if she was finally back in her own skin. She clenched her fists, feeling her claws digging into her flesh. It was... Comforting. The smell that permeated the air wasn't, however.

"So, she's figured out eh?" A voice said, echoing through the hall, "You know, you've retaken a hold of your abilities faster than I expected. This may be more interesting than I thought."

"Where are my friends?!" Sai screamed at the voice.

"Continue down this hall. We'll see if you survive." Was it's only response.

"Oh I will." Sai said threateningly, "And when I find you, I'll kill you!" Her threat echoed down the hall, but the voice did not answer.

Sai got up and sprinted down the hall. To any human eye, she would have appeared as nothing more than a blur, if she was seen at all since she would have been gone in a fraction of a second. Murderous thoughts were racing through her mind as rage and fury courses through her veins.

"Calm down." She thought to herself, "Sai, you need to calm down. No matter how much you want to rip this thing's throat out with your teeth, you've gotta find the others first and make sure that they're okay. Just calm d-"

"HIRAIKOTSU!" A massive spinning object slammed Sai in the in side and sent her flying into the wall. She hit it hard enough to crack the hard stone. Sai searched the area where the object had come from. Her jaw dropped at what she saw. Nami was standing at the entrance to a separate hall that branches off of the one that Sai had been running down. Distracted by her own thoughts, she hadn't noticed the opening or Nami's scent.

"What the hell did you do that for Nami?" Sai groaned in pain. Nami's eyes glowed red at the sound of her name.

"Putting down the dog." She said with a wicked smile, "NOW DIE!"

Sai barely managed to jump out of the way of the Hiraikotsu before it slammed into the wall where she had just been standing.

"Dammit Nami!" Sai screamed, "Nami, what the hell are you doing? Stop it now!" Nami only chuckled evilly, her eyes turning red. She drew her sword.

"Nami, don't make me hurt you!" Sai yelled.

"Do it." She said calmly, "Kill me. Slash my throat with your claws. Bathe in my blood. Give in to the demon you really are."

"Nami, you're possessed! You don't have to do this!" Sai screamed desperately.

"If you won't kill me, then I'll kill you!" Nami yelled as she began to sprint at Sai, sword at the ready to strike. Sai parried the sword with her claws and roundhouse kicked Nami down the hall. She hit the ground hard. It was less than a second before she was up again. Nami felt no pain because she was possessed. She drew a sutra and launched it at Sai, who easily avoided it. Then Nami drew ten sutras and launched them all at once. Sai couldn't dodge all of these. She dug her claws into her palms until they drew blood and then swung them through the air.

"BLADES OF BLOOD!" The sutras were shredded. Nami wasn't far behind her sutras, however. She was at Sai's face with her sword within seconds and was swinging wildly.

"Dammit Nami!" Sai cursed, "POISON WHIP!" The green whip extended from her claws. Sai whipped it around Nami's legs as wrenched them out from under her. She fell flat on her face and dropped the sword. Sai kicked it away from her.

"It's a damn good thing she doesn't have her hidden blade." Sai thought to herself, "Her hoodie can't hide that thing." Sai turned Nami unto her back and slammed her fist into her face. It knocked her out cold. Sai stood up and walked over to the wall.

"DAMMIT!" She screamed as she punched the wall, sending her fist straight through the rock.


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter 27

Sai was walking down the same hall she'd been on for the past few hours. At least, it felt like hours. Sai had no idea how long it had really been. All she knew was that the unconscious form of Nami, all of of her weapons, that she was lugging on shoulder was getting really annoying. She wasn't heavy. Sai's newfound strength made that possible, but the girl was making travel really awkward and Sai didn't want to hurt the girl anymore by going at an insane pace.

"Why won't this smell go away?" Sai muttered to herself, "It's disgusting." Nami groaned. "And the sleeping beauty is awake." Sai said, annoyed. She set Nami down against the wall and knelt in front of her. Nami slowly opened her eyes. They were normal.

"Sai?" Nami groaned.

"Hey there babe." Sai said jokingly, "You're finally up."

"What happened? My head is killing me. And why the hell can't I see?" Nami asked.

"Well, first, you were possessed by a demon and tried to kill me. You're head hurts because I knocked you out. You can't see because it's pitch black." Sai explained.

"How can you see then?" Nami asked.

"That one is a little harder to explain." Sai said, trying to avoid the question.

"Hold on. I brought a flashlight with me from Akage's." Nami said as she dug the thing out of her pocket. She flipped the switch and looked around the hall. The beam of light pierced the darkness.

"This isn't so b-" Nami stopped talking immediately when the beam of light illuminated Sai's face.

"S-s-Sai?" Nami stuttered.

"Told ya it was hard to explain." Sai told her.

"You... You have dog ears... And fangs... And your eyes are golden... W-why?" Nami asked.

"I'm a half-demon, remember?" Sai said, as if it was obvious. Nami ran her hands through her hair trying to deal with the stress of the situation. After a few moments of silence, Nami found her voice again.

"So what do we do now?" She asked.

"Keep going down this hall." Sai told her, "We're gonna need to move fast, so, if you're up to it, I can carry you."

"Won't that slow you down?" Nami asked.

"Not a chance." Sai smirked. She picked up Nami and set off at a breakneck pace.

"Damn girl." Nami said, laughing, "You got fast."

"I know." Sai said, laughing along, "Pretty crazy right?"

"Yeah." Nami said, "So you have any idea what else we're gonna run into down here?"

"No clue." Sai admitted, "I can catch the scent of the others, but there's another scent permeating the air and it's making it impossible to pinpoint. My guess is, though, that we are gonna have to fight for all of them."

"Damn." Nami cursed, "This is going to suck."

"Yeah, you're telling me." Sai said.

Sai kept running. And running. And running. The scenery was unchanging. It was just one long hallway. The only thing that told her she was making any progress was the fact that the scent of her friends was constantly getting stronger. Nami had tried to keep up conversation, but eventually chose to get some sleep to try to make her headache go away. Sai's echoing footsteps were the only noise in the hall, until the voice came back.

"So, you've made it this far, have you Sai?" The voice taunted, "Seems your little friend needed a nap, though."

"Who the hell are you?" Sai demanded, still running.

"Someone with a vested interest in you and your friends. Don't disappoint me." The voice said, "Now, if I'm not mistaken, that girl's lover is next on the list. Good luck." As the last syllable faded, Akage's scent grew thick in the air. He dropped down in front of Sai and Nami from an opening in the ceiling, forcing Sai to stop. His eyes were glowing blood red and demon markings had appeared on his face. The sudden stop woke Nami.

"What the?" Nami said, jolting awake, "Sai, what's going on? Why'd you stop?"

"You might want to get off." Sai said as calmly as she could, "And then back away. Far away. I'll get you when this is over." Sai set the girl down and she immediately obeyed. It would have been illogical not to. She would have been fighting blind. Sai, however, could see perfectly, but so could Akage. And he was in his pure demon form. A bolt of lightning grazed Sai's cheek. Akage was chuckling.

"Damn." Sai muttered to herself, "Today is not a good day!" She jumped forward with claws leading the charge.

"I wouldn't do that." The familiar disembodied voice taunted. Sai stopped in her tracks.

"What?!" She yelled at the air.

"You touch him, and your other friends die." The voice said, "Nami must fight Akage."

"You bastard!" Sai screamed.

"That may or may not be," the voice said dismissively, "but this is Nami's battle." Sai growled murderously.

"Sai, it's okay." Nami said walking up next to her, "I can fight him."

"How? There's no light." Sai pointed out. At that moment, Akage created to massive pillars of fire and set them against the walls. They lit up the place perfectly.

"Nevermind." Sai said, "Alright Nami, be careful. He's in his full demon form. That means he'll be faster and stronger than normal. He also won't have any self-control. Knock him out and he should go back to normal when he wakes up." Nami simply nodded. She walked forward lifting her Hiraikotsu to the ready. Akage grinned, his fangs glinting wickedly in the firelight.

"Get ready babe." He said, "I've always wanted to taste your blood." Nami gritted her teeth, eyes flashing with anger.

"GET THE HELL OUT OF MY BOYFRIEND!" She screamed, throwing the Hiraikotsu as hard as she could at Akage. He jumped over the spinning weapon and landed calmly on his feet.

"Gonna need to try harder than that." He said sarcastically. Nami grinned.

"Boomerang's back baby." At that moment, the Hiraikotsu slammed into Akage's back and sent him flying forward. He hit the floor and slid along it on his face. Akage wasn't on the ground for long. He jumped up and faced her, ready to fight, though severly weakened. Nami drew her sword and charged. She feigned left, but them quickly moved right to attack. Akage was still too fast. He blocked the blow and knocked Nami back. She slammed into the wall letting out a little yelp of pain. That didn't stop her for long, though. She was off the wall and charging again within seconds. Akage shot off a ball of flame at her. Nami dropped, slid under the attack, and popped up again after the fire had passed. Akage obviously hadn't been expecting that and Nami got in a slash across his chest. He immediately jumped back.

"You're better than I thought, but you're not going to kill me." Akage taunted, "If you were, you would have done it just then. You won't beat me while I still live." Nami said nothing. Rage was coursing through her veins. How dare they do this to him. She charged.

"I on the other hand," Akage continued, "am not afraid to kill you." He shot off a bolt of lighting and it hit Nami square in the chest.

Sai ran to Nami's side. The lightning bolt had struck her right over her heart. She was worried whether or not Nami could have survived that. Sai knelt down beside her.

"Hey! Hey!" Sai yelled at her friend, "C'mon get up!" Nami opened her eyes.

"Hey." She said weakly. Sai hugged her tightly.

"You alright?" She asked.

"Yeah." Nami said, "I'm fine. Now let me up."

"No!" Sai said forcefully, "I can't let you get yourself killed."

"Sai, I need to finish this." Nami told her, "This is my fight. Besides, life without him just isn't worth living anymore." Sai bit her lip. She knew exactly how the girl felt.

"Just stay alive alright." Sai told her as she let Nami up.

"I'll do my best." She said as she walked forward. Nami sheathed her sword.

"So the girl still breathes." Akage joked menacingly, "Yet she has sheathed her weapon. She won't be breathing for much longer, but I'll let her have one last shot." Nami gritted her teeth in anger, but didn't respond. She drew five sutras ,knelt down on the ground, and arranged them in a star pattern. The star was big enough for Nami step inside. Once there, she clasped her hands together and bowed her head and began to chant. Pillars of blue light shot from the sutras and began to twist around Nami. After a few moments the light faded and Nami stepped outside of the star. She knelt down again and slammed her fist into the middle of the sutra star. Lines of symbols that were burning themselves into the stone floor shot straight out from each point of the star. Nami opened her eyes and lifted her head to face Akage. Sai gasped at what she saw. Her eyes had turned completely blue and black markings covered her face. Nami stood slowly.

"The girl does still breathe." She said, "You, however, won't." Akage smirked, his eyes glowing brighter than ever.

"So you'd kill your lover? How perfect." He taunted. Nami smirked.

"The thing about phoenixes is that they always rise from the ashes." She said calmly. Akage's face went pale. Nami took the opportunity and moved forward at an inhuman speed. She covered the distance between her and Akage in a fraction of a second. Her fist slammed hard into his stomach and it sent him sliding backwards. Nami pushed the attack. It was all Akage could do to block and dodge the relentless assault. Nami didn't take long in breaking down this defense and got a punch in across Akage's jaw. He was sent flying and slammed into the ground hard. Nami moved quickly and pinned him down with her knee. She took two fingers and places them on Akage's forehead. Blue light erupted on contact. It was exceedingly bright and blinded Sai momentarily.

Once the light had faded and Sai could see again. She scanned the area where Nami had just delivered the blow to Akage. They were both still there, but Nami was lying limp onto of an also limp Akage.

"Dammit!" Sai yelled in frustration. She sprinted over to where the two were and rolled Nami off of Akage. Sai checked their necks to see if either had a pulse. Both did. She sighed in relief.

"They're just unconscious." She thought to herself, "That's good, but now I'm going to have to carry them both until they wake up." Sai picked both of them up and threw them over her shoulder and then kept walking down the hall.

"I was right." Sai muttered to herself, "Today does suck."


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Sai had been walking down this hall for what felt like an hour. She had no idea how long it had actually been. Her thoughts were racing through what could possibly come next. It was obvious that, whoever this demon was, he had all of them trapped. Akage stirred. Sai sat both him and Nami down against the wall.

"So, you're the first up, eh?" Sai said to him.

"Huh?" He said, getting his bearings, "Sai, how did we get here?"

"We fell, got knocked out and separated, and then you tried to kill Nami and I right after Nami tried to kill me. Geez, Akage don't you remember?" Sai said sarcastically.

"Damn." Akage cursed, "No. I've only got vague images... And a burning sensation in my head."

"That's probably because Nami sent a huge surge of spiritual energy through your forehead to bring you back to us." Sai explained.

"Why would she do that?" Akage asked.

"Well, besides the fact that you were trying to kill us, I don't really think she was herself at the time either." Sai admitted.

"How do you mean?" Akage asked. Sai told him about Nami's own transformation. He looked over in awe at the girl.

"It was pretty crazy. She even had me scared." Sai admitted, "Thought my demon blood was going to be purified just by being in her proximity." Nami laughed weakly.

"Had you going, didn't I?" She joked in a small voice.

"Well look who's back." Sai said happily, "If it isn't our little possessed warrior priestess."

"I wasn't possessed Sai." Nami insisted. Akage suddenly took her into a massive hug.

"I don't care if you were possessed or not." Akage said, "I'm just glad you're okay. I'm so sorry Nami. I know I hurt you. I swear I'll never let it happen again. Please forgive me Nami! Please!"

"A-a-Akage..." Nami stuttered. Tears came to her eyes, "Of course I forgive you!" She cried, sobbing, "You weren't yourself. You don't need to apologize. I love you and you're here with me. That's all I care about!" Akage couldn't make words form in his mouth, so he just hugged Nami tighter. Sai, on the other hand, couldn't have felt more awkward. She was invading on such a personal moment, but it also made her realize something. Kaze was still in danger and there was almost nothing that she could do about it. She hung her head, tears running hot down her cheeks. Nami and Akage turned and both noticed. Nami immediately ran to her side.

"Sai!" Nami said worriedly, "Sai, what's wrong? Why are you crying?"

"Kaze is still under that demon and so is Umi. They're in danger and I can't help them. I feel so useless!" Sai yelled.

"Sai you are not useless." Nami assured her, "You saved me and together we can save both of them. Trust me."

"She's right." Akage agreed, walking over, "We'll get them back." Sai nodded, drying her eyes. She looked down the hall.

"We should probably get going." Nami pointed out.

"True." Akage agreed, "Nami, I can carry you. Sai deserves a rest." Nami nodded and got on Akage's back.

"You ready Sai?" He asked. Sai only nodded. The two took off at a run down the hall, further into the darkness.

They had been going for at least an hour. Nami and Akage had held up the majority of the conversation, but Sai had started talking again as well. Akage created balls of fire to follow him and illuminate the hallway for Nami. Neither he nor Sai needed them, but they made Nami more comfortable.

"Hey Sai." Akage called out.

"Yeah?" Sai answered.

"Can you pick up the scent of the others?" He asked.

"Yeah." She told him, "I've been able to smell them for a long time. Their scent is almost overpowered by the scent of the demon, but it's there and we're getting closer. We'll definitely run into Umi first."

"So the demon is saving Kaze for last?" Nami asked.

"Looks that way." Sai said, "And I'm going to kill him for it." Both Akage and Nami nodded their agreement. Sai sniffed the air again.

"Hey guys." Sai called out, "We're not just dealing with one demon. There are at least two really powerful ones. They might have lesser demons with them, but I don't smell any right now."

"Dammit!" Akage cursed, "This just keeps getting worse doesn't it."

"Yeah." Sai said, "And my guess is that it won't be getting any better anytime soon."

"You're probably right." Akage said nodding.

"We need to hurry." Sai pointed out, "We've been down here for at least a day and we've still got a long way to go." Akage nodded and the two redoubled their pace down the hall.

Kiretsu and Mageru looked at the two half-demons and the human as they ran through an enchanted mirror.

"They're making fast progress." Mageru pointed out.

"Yes." Kiretsu said simply.

"They're very strong, just like we'd hoped. The human girl has even discovered her hidden ability already. Very impressive."

"Hmm." Kiretsu mumbled. Mageru sighed. His brother had been like this ever since the five had set foot on the shrine grounds. A knock came at the door. Mageru went to answer it. At the door was Souta, the keeper of the shrine. Mageru invited him into the room and bid him to sit down. He did and Mageru followed.

"So Souta, what did you want?" Mageru asked directly.

"How are they doing?" Souta questioned, "Are they alright?"

"I can't really answer that question." Mageru said flatly.

"My niece is down there dammit! Tell me if they are alright!" Souta demanded. Mageru sighed.

"They're fine." He answered, "Sai has only found the first two, though." Souta smiled.

"That's a lot faster than you were expecting." He pointed out.

"True." Mageru said, "But they've still got a lot left to do." Souta's face darkened.

"So you weren't kidding about the final stage." He said. Mageru nodded.

"I don't think that they need it, but my brother thinks otherwise. It's better to be safe than sorry in any case." He said.

"Hmm..." Souta mumbled. He got up without another word and quietly exited the room. It would be a miracle if they all survived.

Sai and Akage were sprinting down the hall. Sai had caught the smell of blood, Umi's blood, and lots of it.

"You think she's alright?" Nami asked worriedly.

"Yeah." Sai said, "But she won't be for much longer if she loses anymore blood." Nami visibly tensed.

"Don't worry Nami. We'll get to her in time." Akage assured her. Nami didn't respond. That's when Sai saw it. Umi's blood was streaked across the wall. It looked as if she had smeared it across the wall while using it to support herself. Sai wanted to vomit. Akage darkened his fires before Nami saw it. She seemed to understand and didn't ask questions.

They stopped where the blood had pooled. Umi stood in the middle.

"Welcome." She said, smiling wickedly, "I hope you like what I've done with the place. This shade of red is just such a pleasant color." Akage handed Nami to Sai and stepped forward, his feet splashing in the blood.

"Sai, get Nami back." He commanded, "I'll take on Umi."

"Right." Sai said, "Just remember. Knock her out, don't kill her. And do it before she bleeds out. I can save her with my spiritual energy, but only if she's still alive to begin with." Akage nodded his head in reply.

"So, the redhead steps forward to fight me." Umi said, laughing, "This should be fun, half-breed."

"Umi, I'll be sure to make this quick. I promise that that demon won't have you for much longer." Akage told her.

"Give me your best shot." Umi taunted. Akage did. As the last syllable left her tongue, a fire bolt slammed into Umi's chest. It had dual effect. It knocked Umi off of her feet giving Akage the advantage, but Akage also allowed the flame to be hot enough in the right places to cauterize the wound from where she was bleeding so badly. Akage didn't take time to gloat over this. He was moving towards her immediately, but he didn't get to her fast enough. Umi was up faster than any human should have been able to and had two throwing knives drawn. She launched them at Akage. He dodged the first, but the second dug into his right shoulder. With a grunt of pain, he ripped out the blade and threw to the ground. Umi drew her swords and charged at Akage. He let her. Umi lunged forward for an attack, but Akage jumped flipped over top of her. She lost her balance and slipped on the pool of her blood and fell onto her face. Akage was there in a second and had her pinned. Umi didn't take this lying down, however, and wrenched a hand free, grabbed a knife, and jammed it into Akage's leg. He lept off of her and ripped the blade out of his thigh.

"Damn. You're good." Akage said.

"Trained my whole life." She said with a smirk, her eyes glowing red, "Even though that was five hundred years ago, I'm still more than a match for you."

"That's what you think." Akage said. At that moment, two birds of fire erupted from the floor and slammed into Umi. They pinned her to the wall and turned into shackles. Akage walked calmly to her imprisoned body.

"I'll make this quick. Just like I promised." He told her. She spit in his face, her saliva laced with blood. Akage calmly wiped it away and knocked her out cold.

Sai saw Akage finish the battle. Umi fell into Akage's arms as the fiery shackles disappeared. Sai rushed over.

"Alright put her down. Lay her down on her back." She commanded. Akage obeyed and Sai knelt down next to her. She put her hands over the places where Umi had been hurt and began to channel her spiritual energy into them. The wounds, both internal and external, began to heal quickly. It only took a minute or two for Umi to begin to stir. She groaned loudly. Sai stopped the flow, breathing heavily.

"What's going on?" Umi asked, looking around, "Why am I lying in a pool of blood?"

"That's a long story." Sai said weakly, "We'll explain along the way. Can you walk?"

"Yeah. I think so." Umi said, sitting up slowly.

"Alright then. Let's get moving." Sai said helping her off the ground.

"Not so fast." Came the voice again.

"Dammit!" Sai cursed, "Not you again!"

"Relax Saiai." The voice said, "I bring good news."

"Like what?" Sai yelled sarcastically.

"You only have the final stage left to go before you may leave this place and return to your true home." It told them, "Good luck."


	29. Chapter 29

Chapter 29

Sai had been mulling over what the voice had said for the past few hours. They had decided to rest and catch their breath before this final stage. Away from the massive amounts of Umi's blood, of course. Sai didn't know whether to be happy or extremely apprehensive about what was in store for them. More than likely, though, it was the latter. The sound of Nami calling her name broke her out of her trance.

"Sai... Sai... Sai!" Nami said, trying to get her attention.

"What?" Sai said, her head bolting around to face Nami.

"You've been really quiet. I was just wondering if you were alright." Nami told her.

"I'm fine." Sai lied, "Just thinking." Nami nodded, understanding what Sai was really saying.

"Well then, we should probably get moving again." Umi pointed out. The others agreed and they proceeded on their way. Sai carried Umi, while Akage carried Nami.

The group was speeding down the hall. Sai kind of wished she didn't have to carry a demon slayer and all if her gear, but when the battle came, Sai knew she would want her by her side.

"Damn you guys are fast." Umi commented.

"You surprised?" Sai asked.

"A little. Still getting used to this whole demon idea." She told her.

"You have no idea." Sai said.

"I guess not." Umi admitted, "I didn't just find out that I'm half demon." Sai chuckled.

"It's not that bad." Akage said.

"I don't think so either. Without them, we'd be dead by now." Nami pointed out.

"I don't know about that." Sai said, "You are trained demon slayers."

"Yeah, but our training now only amounts to vague memories and instinct." Nami countered.

"Still gave me a run for my money and you beat Akage." Sai pointed out. Akage blushed heavily and turned his face away. This made Sai laugh.

"You guys are still getting used to your powers too." Nami said, "I guess we're all at a bit of a disadvantage."

"True enough." Umi agreed.

"Sai, we getting any closer?" Akage asked. Sai sniffed the air searching for Kaze's scent. Something strange filled her lungs. Her eyes widened with panic.

"Guys!" Sai yelled, "We have to hurry! Kaze's scent has changed!"

"What?!" Nami said, confused, "Sai, what do you mean? How has his scent changed?"

"It's not human." Akage said bluntly. Everyone turned to look at Akage. "Look, my sense of smell may not be as good as Sai's, but even I can smell that."

"Dammit." Sai cursed bitterly, "I was hoping that I was just mixing up the scents in my head." She started to panic. This couldn't be happening. She needed Kaze more than she needed air. The familiar voice filled the air once again.

"So, you finally caught on, did you?" The voice said.

"Damn you!" Sai screamed, "What the hell did you do to Kaze?"

"Not much." The voice said nonchalantly, "Just fused his blood with demon blood, specifically that of a dog demon."

"YOU BASTARD!" Sai roared.

"Well now, Sai, how else could we have promised you a good fight." The voice said, "A human didn't seem to be any match for you, so why not make you fight someone of your own caliber."

"I'll kill you!" Sai screamed at the ceiling.

"Good luck." The voice said before going silent once more.

"Dammit!" Sai cursed, "I'm going to rip that bastard's throat out!"

"Sai, calm down." Umi said, trying to help her friend, "Let's focus on getting Kaze back first, then we'll kill whatever the hell that has that voice."

"Right." Sai agreed, "But I get to kill that demon." The rest of the group nodded and Sai and Akage sped up their pace down the hall.

It didn't take long to reach. It might have only been ten minutes since the voice had stopped talking. There before them stood the only break in the constant hallway that they had all been traveling in for so long. It was a giant door. The thing must have been at least twenty feet high. It was made of what looked to be very fine hard wood with intricate decorations carved on it and covered in gold leaf.

"So that bastards go for a really nice door, but don't bother to make any of this massive hallway nice in any way." Nami joked dryly. No one responded. Sai walked up to the door. She stared at it for a few moments before, in a blur of movement, she roundhouse kicked the door. It flew open revealing a huge vaulted room. The room was circular and must have been at least one hundred feet in diameter and at least that high. In the middle of the floor stood what looked to be a man. Sai knew better, though. The man reeked of demon and had a large demonic aura emanating from him.

"So you finally arrived." The demon said, "Welcome." Sai gritted her teeth. This demon was the source of the voice that had taunted them for so long.

"Who the hell are you?" Sai screamed at the demon.

"My name is Kiretsu." He told her calmly.

"Why have you done this to us?" Akage demanded.

"I have been testing you." He said, "And you have one final test to pass. Sai, if you would, please step forward."

"Why the hell should I?" Sai demanded. Kiretsu simply stepped aside to reveal what his body had been blocking from view. Behind him, tied to a post was Kaze. He looked to be asleep, but Sai could sense the new demonic aura emanating from him. The dog ears on his head were new too. Sai growled menacingly, baring her fangs.

"Now, please step forward." Kiretsu repeated, "Walk to the center of the room." Sai did so, grudgingly. Her steps echoed loudly throughout the room. She reached the center of the room.

"Now w-" Sai started to say. In the middle of her sentence, her muscles froze. She couldn't move and her body was heating up. Her vision was blurring and turning red. Sai started to growl uncontrollably. Kaze raised his head, moving for the first time. His eyes were blood red and there were demon markings on his face. He bared his fangs and started to growl at Sai.

Sai's friends looked on in horror at what was happening. Sai was transforming into her full demon state and, somehow, Kaze was already in one.

"That bastard." Akage said, realization hitting him, "He's going to make them fight each other."

"That's sick." Nami spat.

"We've gotta help them." Umi said, drawing her swords. Kiretsu turned towards them.

"I wouldn't do that." He said, "Right now, neither of them are controlling their bodies. I am and I could end their lives in a second. Once they've transformed, no one will control them and they could end your lives in a second. Just let them fight it out."

"Damn." Umi cursed, sheathing her sword, "He's right. We can't do anything. Not without somebody dying." Kiretsu nodded his approval and turned back to face the scene unfolding before them. The demonic aura emanating off of both of them was beginning to increase exponentially. Kiretsu smiled.

"It's time." He said.

Suddenly Kaze broke free from his bonds to the post. Both he and Sai moved like a blur. Sai went to punch Kaze, but was met only by Kaze's own fist. The resulting wave of pressure knocked everyone in the room off of their feet. Sai and Kaze quickly disengaged. No one's eyes could keep up with their movements. All they could do was hear the results of they're engagements. Something crashed into the wall, turning a section of it to rubble. Kaze landed outside of the dust cloud. He smirked and licked a wound on his right arm that was bleeding badly. A massive piece of wall came flying out of the dust. Kaze barely had time to get out of the way. Sai, however, was right behind the rock and slammed into Kaze in mid-air, digging her claws into his shoulder. He wrenched her hand out of him and kicked her hard, sending her flying across the room. Both he and Sai landed on their feet and slid to a stop. They didn't stay that way for long, though. Within a fraction of a second, they were sprinting at each other, claws raised. Kaze slashed first. Sai ducked under the attack and then slammed her shoulder up into Kaze's stomach and sent him flying into the air. He grunted in pain as he slammed into the floor across the room and slid head first into the wall.

"They're gonna kill each other." Nami said, "We can't just sit here."

"You must." Kiretsu said. The three whirled around to face him. At some point during the battle, he had gotten behind them.

"You cannot interfere." He continued as the battle raged on, "They won't kill each other. However, if you interfere, they will never discover their hidden power."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Nami demanded.

"I am here to help you. You are the only ones that can defeat Konton and I want him dead. You to discover your true power in order to accomplish this and helping you to do so is the only way that I can help." Kiretsu explained.

"So this whole thing was part of your plan?" Akage accused.

"Yes." He admitted, "You couldn't be aware of it or else it wouldn't work."

"Then why are you telling us?" Umi asked.

"Because you have already discovered your abilities. Nami and Umi, you have the ability to enter into a spiritual state. Nami is the only one that has done it, but Umi has unlocked the ability. Akage, you have gotten the ability to enter into a purified demon state. Your human blood will control your heart and mind, while your demon blood will control your body. It will make you a hundred times stronger. Sai is currently in the process of discovering the same thing. She will also be able to enter into the spiritual state during the night of the new moon when she is human." Kiretsu explained.

"What about Kaze?" Nami asked, "You've made him a half-demon."

"And a half-demon he will stay." Kiretsu told them, "He will have the same hidden power as Sai. The interesting thing is that, when together, their power will increase exponentially."

"You forced him into being a half-demon forever?!" Akage asked incredulously.

"No." Kiretsu said, "He agreed to the transformation. We did not tell him about this battle, but we did tell him everything else."

"Wait, wait, wait." Nami said quickly, "We? There are more behind this?"

"Yes." Kiretsu admitted, "My brother, Mageru, and Sai's uncle from this time, Souta."

"Anyone else?" Umi demanded.

"No." Kiretsu told her, "Everyone else is dead. Konton has systematically killed all of us off. We fled here to escape."

"How did you get here?" Nami asked, "The well has been closed for years and the only ones ever able to use it were Kagome and Inuyasha, Sai's parents."

"My brother and I are time demons. We can use different mediums to travel through time. The Bone Eater's Well just happened to be the easiest one to use in the area. We didn't know at the time that we would find the one that could help us defeat Konton." Kiretsu explained, "We can discuss any further questions you have later. Right now, you must be ready to do your part in this battle."

"Our part?" Akage asked, confused. Kiretsu nodded.

"Akage, when they have weakened themselves just a little bit more, you and I must step in and hold them down. Then Nami and Umi, in their spiritual state, must do what Nami did to you in your battle. You two girls might want to do that now. This won't last much longer. Nami and Umi both nodded and set their sutras out, while Akage and Kiretsu readied themselves to fly into the fight. The two girls underwent the transformation and took their place behind Akage and Kiretsu.

The battle between Sai and Kaze was evenly matched. It had been going on the entire time that the others had been talking. Both were becoming fatigued, even in their elevated state. Kaze took advantage of an opening and drove his elbow into Sai's stomach. She responded by digging her claws into Kaze's arm, wrenching it away from her, and then kicking him the chest, sending him skidding backwards. Both of them paused, breathing heavily, eyes pulsing with bloodlust.

"NOW!" Kiretsu screamed. He and Akage charged forward and tackled the unsuspecting combatants. They had them on the ground and, in their weakened states, neither Sai nor Kaze could get back up. Nami and Umi quickly ran to where they were pinned, eyes glowing blue and spiritual energy emanating from them. Umi put two fingers on Sai'd forehead and Nami did the same to Kaze. Then they began to channel a huge amount of spiritual energy into the two. Both of them screamed in pain. After a few moments, however, the screaming stopped and the two passed out. Nami and Umi stopped the flow of energy and quickly returned to their regular forms. Akage and Kiretsu released their grip on Sai and Kaze and stood up.

"So, is it over? Are they going to be okay?" Nami asked.

"Yes. They should be." Kiretsu said, "Come. Let's take them to the main house and allow them to rest and recover." Kiretsu picked up Kaze and Akage did the same for Sai. Kiretsu began to walk towards the far end of the room. A door appeared that hadn't been there before. Kiretsu opened the door and the rest of them followed him through it and back to the outside.


	30. Chapter 30

Chapter 30

Sai rolled over onto her side while sleeping in bed. To her discomfort, she was out of space to roll onto and fell out of bed. She hit the floor in a tangle of sheets.

"Dammit!" She said. Someone across the room laughed. Sai turned her head quickly to see who it was.

"You alright Sai?" Kaze asked.

"Kaze?" Sai asked, confused. She blinked, trying to make sure she wasn't dreaming. Kaze was sitting on another bed. He was covered in bandages and looked pretty banged up. Sai guessed she did too, given how she felt and the amount of bandages she felt on her own skin. The main difference, though, were the dog ears on his head, the fangs in his mouth, and the golden color in his eyes.

"Surprised to see me?" Kaze asked jokingly.

"Kaze!" Sai yelled. She threw the sheets off of her and threw herself at Kaze, hugging him tightly, "You're okay!"

"Not if you keep this up." He said, laughing, pain straining his voice, "Sai this hurts."

"I know. It hurts me too, but I just can't help it." She told him, "just hold me back."

"Alright Sai." He said, wrapping his arms around her. They stayed like that for a few moments before Sai finally broke away.

"I'm so happy to see you!" She said, relieved that he wasn't a dream, "I didn't know if I ever would again. I was scared."

"I was too." Kaze admitted, "But we made it and we're together again. Not to mention the fact that we're the same now."

"You mean that you're a half-demon now?" Sai asked.

"Yeah. We have Sesshomaru to thank for that one." Kaze told her.

"What? Sesshomaru? What'd he do?" Sai asked, confused.

"He gave me the blood to spur the transformation." Kaze explained, "I guess he was in on the plan too, though, I wish they had told me more than they did before all this happened."

"What plan?" Sai questioned.

"The two time demons, Kiretsu and Mageru, came up with a plan to help us beat Konton. They wanted us to unlock our so called "hidden abilities" and that's what this whole thing was supposed to do. That's what they told me when they offered me demon blood. What they didn't tell me, though, was how they were going to unlock them." Kaze said, regretfully.

"You mean, they are the ones that made us fight each other?" Sai asked, anger rising in her voice.

"Yes, but they did it for a reason. Everyone they know and love has been killed by Konton and they don't want anyone else to have to suffer that." Kaze explained. Sai felt her anger drop. She hadn't gone through that. Now she could understand why they were did what they did. In their shoes, she probably would have done the same thing.

"It's still sick." Sai insisted.

"I agree, but I get why." Kaze said. Sai nodded her agreement.

At that moment, they heard a knock on the door. Kaze turned towards the sound.

"Come in." He called out. The man called Souta stepped through. He looked over the room, his eyes stopping on Sai.

"Ahhh. Sai you're awake." He said happily.

"Um... Yeah... I am." Sai said, unsure of what to say, "Who are you exactly?"

"I am your uncle, Souta." The man said, sitting down in a chair by the door. Sai's jaw dropped.

"My uncle?" She asked incredulously, "No way."

"Come now. I'm sure Kagome mentioned her family from this time." Souta insisted.

"Yeah, she did, but never thought that I would meet one of them." Sai admitted.

"Well, now you have." He said happily, "And it looks like you have your real memories back in full now."

"I hadn't really thought about that." Sai admitted, "But yeah I guess so. What's going to happen to all of our 'family and friends?'"

"You simply took the place of someone else for awhile. They've already taken their rightful place where you left off in the hospital. Everyone's memory has been altered to replace you with them." Souta explained.

"I see." Sai said, almost saddened by the fact that everyone she'd thought she'd known here didn't actually know her and wouldn't miss her. Souta noticed Sai get lost in her own thoughts and turned to Kaze.

"So how are you this morning, Kaze?" He asked.

"I'm alright. Definitely sore and still getting used to this whole half-demon thing." Kaze admitted, "Any idea how long it will be before I'm better?"

"More than like, you'll be up and walking normally later today. Sai seems to have already done this." Souta said, noting that Sai's own bed was all the way across the room and the sheets were tangled on the floor, "As for when you'll be back at one hundred percent, my guess is in about a day or two." Kaze nodded and smiled. This whole half-demon thing was turning out to be a good idea for him. Sai's ears perked up at the mention of the time.

"Hey we can't stay here that long." Sai pointed out, "Everyone at home is probably worried sick and we have a wedding to go to."

"Worry not Sai." Souta reassured her, "Mageru explained the whole thing, well maybe not the whole thing, to you family. They are awaiting your arrival and the wedding will take place once you are completely healed and return to your own time."

"Once we return, will we ever be able to come back?" Sai asked.

"Yes. Any of the five in your group will be able to come back to this time." Souta told her, "But no one else." Sai nodded sadly.

"You were hoping your mom could come back and see her brother, weren't you?" Kaze asked.

"Yeah." Sai admitted, "I know leaving her family pained her."

"I appreciate the thought Sai." Souta said, "But I still have her memory and now I've seen you. That's all I could want from her." Sai simply nodded. Souta got up out of his chair.

"Well, I guess I should let you two get some rest." He said turning to the door, "Get better quickly." With that, he opened the door and left. Sai, taking advantage of the privacy, snuggled up to Kaze. He put his arm around her and pulled her close letting her lay her head on his chest.

The two of them sat there like that for a long time. Neither of them spoke much. Sai and Kaze even fell asleep for about an hour. They were awoken by the sound of traffic outside, however.

"Hey Kaze." Sai said.

"Yeah?" Kaze responded.

"You know what this reminds me of?" She asked.

"What?" Kaze asked, confused.

"This reminds me of when you proposed to me. It was in a situation exactly like this." Sai told him.

"Yeah I guess so." Kaze said, "But this time we're both injured."

"I don't think that's the main difference." Sai joked, rubbing Kaze's ear. He shuddered with pleasure.

"Damn. No wonder you like that so much. That feels amazing." Kaze admitted. Sai laughed.

"You know, half-demons mate for life." Sai said, snuggling up closer to Kaze.

"I think I like the sound of that." Kaze said. Sai lifted her head off of Kaze's chest gazed at him lovingly. She closed her eyes and began lean in. Kaze followed suit. Their lips met. Kaze pulled Sai closer, desperately wanting to feel her familiar body against his. Sai didn't fight this. She wanted the exact same thing. The passion grew. Kaze's hands roamed all around Sai's body. She enjoyed every minute of it. Sai pushed Kaze down onto the bed and climbed on top of him and continued their intimacy. Kaze couldn't get over how intoxicating Sai's scent was. It was almost like he was getting drunk purely off of her presence.

Just as Sai started to take off the white t-shirt she had on, the door flew open. Nami and Umi ran into the room.

"Hey g-" Nami said excitedly before she saw what was taking place. Sai and Kaze were both turned around and facing Nami and Umi with eyes wide in surprise. They looked exactly like deer in the headlights. Except for the fact that both of their faces were turning a deep shape of red.

"Nevermind..." Nami said, turning to leave, "Umi let's go. I think what we have to say can wait..."

"Yeah no kidding..." She agreed. They left shutting the door behind them. Neither Sai nor Kaze moved for a few moments. Then Sai got off of Kaze and sat on the bed, staring at the door. Kaze sat up next to her.

"Dammit." Kaze cursed, "They just had to walk in." Sai cleared her throat.

"Yeah, completely ruined everything." Sai complained, leaning back against the headboard. Kaze sniffed the air, taking in Sai's scent.

"You know, you still smell amazing." He said, leaning in and kissing her neck.

"Hey, I can't really help it." Sai said, blushing, "I have no control over what my body does when I'm turned on."

"I'm not complaining." Kaze said, continuing to kiss her neck.

"No Kaze. Not now." Sai said, pushing him away.

"Oh come on, Sai. You can't smell like that and expect me to be able to control myself." Kaze whined.

"I know." She said, sighing, "I'm sorry, but let's just wait, okay."

"Alright Sai. I can wait, but only because you asked me to." Kaze said, kissing her one last time on her lips.

"Thanks Kaze. You're the best." Sai said, "Now come on. We should get dressed."

"Yeah." Kaze agreed, "And figure out some way to explain ourselves to my sisters."

"That might be a bit difficult." Sai agreed laughing, getting up and walking over to where a new set of clothes was laid out for her.

"Don't blame me if I can't think straight. I'm basically drunk off of how good you smell right now." Kaze told her, putting on a pair of jeans.

"Would you stop." Sai laughed, putting on a shirt, much to Kaze's disappointment, "Is it really that distracting?"

"You have no idea." Kaze said.

The two finished getting dressed and walked out into the sunshine. Nami and Umi were waiting right outside the door for them.

"Hey you two." Umi said, winking.

"So how'd it go?" Nami inquired.

"You guys kinda ruined the moment..." Sai told them.

"Damn." Umi cursed, "See Nami. I told you we shouldn't have gone in."

"Well how was I supposed to know what we were going to walk into?" Nami countered, "We both thought they were asleep."

"You could have at least knocked first." Umi told her.

"Sorry to interrupt you two..." Sai said sarcastically, "But is there anywhere we can get some food?"

"Yeah." Nami said, "Inside the main house, Souta has lunch ready."

"Lunch?" Kaze asked

"Yeah, you guys have been out for a while." Nami told them, "That's why we were coming to get you."

"Why you were coming to get them." Umi corrected.

"Yeah, whatever." Sai said dismissively, grabbing Kaze's hand, "Come on Kaze. Let's get something to eat."

"Sounds good to me." He said. They walked together to the house.

Inside the house, the smell of food filled Sai's lungs. Souta was in the dining room with several plates of food set out. Obviously, he had been expecting them. They walked into the dining room drawing his attention.

"Well, if it isn't the two love birds." He joked. This made Sai and Kaze blush.

"Did you talk to my sisters?" Kaze asked.

"I did indeed." He said, smiling, "Worry not. I know what they told me was likely exaggerated. Now, please, sit and eat. You must be starving since you haven't eaten in over two days."

"Thank you." They both said, taking seats at the table and beginning to eat. Under normal circumstance, the food would have been decent at best. However, both Sai and Kaze were famished and so the food suddenly became delicious. Neither of them spoke a word while they ate. Souta was astonished at how fast they ate and at the sheer amount. Both finished at the same time. They got up quickly, thanked him, put their dishes away, and left the house leaving Souta to stare in surprise.

Sai skipped out into the sunshine. She stopped a few feet in front of Kaze and stretched. Then she turned around to face him.

"That was good." She said, cheerily.

"Yeah." Kaze agreed, "You seem to be feeling better."

"Of course. We heal really quickly Kaze, just in case you forgot." Sai joked. Kaze laughed.

"I hadn't forgotten. I just didn't think it would be this fast." Kaze admitted, "Those wounds we had were really bad."

"Welcome to my world." Sai said winking, "So I was thinking. Now that you're a half-demon, you're gonna need a demon blade."

"A demon blade?" Kaze asked.

"Yeah. Like mine. I've got Jikan and Mondai. You need something." Sai insisted.

"I guess it wouldn't be a bad idea." Kaze admitted, "It'd be better than my chain scythe." Sai smiled.

"We'll go see Totosai after the wedding." She told him.

"Geez, that is coming up soon isn't it?" Kaze said, running his hands through his hair. It made Sai laugh.

"Yeah. It's gonna happen as soon as we go back." Sai said.

"I guess that it just hasn't hit me yet, with all that's happened." Kaze admitted.

"I can understand that." Sai said, walking to him and taking his hands into hers. Then she smiled, "Just don't miss it." Kaze laughed and took Sai into a tight embrace.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world." He told her. Sai gave him a quick kiss and then skipped off to find the others. Kaze followed close behind.

They found them sitting in front of the Tree of Ages. Akage saw them coming and rose to greet them.

"Hey there guys." He called out, waving.

"Hey Akage." Sai called back. Kaze simply waved.

"How are you guys?" He asked, "Feeling alright?"

"Yeah, I'd say we're doing alright." Kaze said, smiling. Sai noticed Akage give her a somewhat strange look.

"Oh come on! Is it really that obvious Akage?" Sai whined. He blushed a bright shade of red.

"Um... Well... Uh..." Akage stammered. Sai sighed heavily.

"Dammit." She said in a defeated voice.

"Hey, no one's complaining about your scent Sai." Kaze joked. Nami and Umi looked confused.

"What's going on?" Nami asked, "What's with Sai's scent?" Sai rolled her eyes, walked over, and whispered into her and Umi's ears.

"That gives off that strong of a smell?" Nami asked, surprised at what Sai had told her.

"Obviously." Umi said, "Kaze looks intoxicated by it. Not really sure how he can stand still."

"It's not without difficulty." Kaze admitted.

"Well I'm glad you are." Sai said happily, returning to his side.

"Akage, does it really smell that good?" Nami asked.

"The scent is extremely strong, but that kind of scent is only appealing to the mate of the one giving it off." Akage explained, "To me, she smells essentially the same as normal. It's just that the scent is a whole hell of a lot thicker and stronger." Nami smiled.

"Good. I'm glad." Nami said happily. Akage laughed.

"Did you think I would be attracted to her scent?" He asked.

"Maybe a little." She admitted.

"Not likely. Birds and dogs don't tend to mix well." Akage joked. Everyone laughed at that.

"Alright guys. Can we stop talking about this?" Sai said, "I just kinda want it to fade before we go back for the wedding. I don't need my dad freaking out over something that didn't even happen and killing my fiancé."

"Yeah that wouldn't be fun." Kaze agreed.

"Don't worry Sai." Akage assured her, "It should fade before tomorrow and we're probably not gonna go back for another day or two." Sai nodded.

"Good I'm glad." She said happily, "Now come on. Let's go do something. Enjoy the benefits of the modern era before we have to go back to our own time."


	31. Chapter 31

Chapter 31

Two days passed in the modern era. The group had done their best to enjoy their remaining time in the modern era because they knew it would be a while before they came back. They lived it up quite well for a couple days. However, the morning came that they had agreed to return to their time. Nami and Umi were sparring in the courtyard, while Akage, Sai, and Kaze looked on from their seats on a bench.

"So you two ready for your wedding?" Akage asked.

"As ready as we'll ever be." Kaze said, smiling.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sai asked jokingly.

"I'm nervous. I don't want your dad to murder me for taking his little girl away." Kaze told her. Sai bust out laughing. Akage couldn't help but smirk either.

"What? I think it's a legitimate concern." Kaze joked.

"I don't know. You might be right." She said with a devilish grin, "Now that you're a half-demon, he might be concerned that I'm not the dominant member of the relationship."

"You've gotta be kidding me." Kaze said. Sai shook her head. He turned to Akage.

"Tell me she's kidding." He said.

"Well Kaze, I don't know." Akage told him, "I don't know Sai's father all that well. What I did notice is that he seems very... Protective... Sai very well could be right." Kaze ran his hands through his hair.

"Damn." He cursed, "This is gonna be interesting."

"Yeah, my dad might even go full demon and eat you for being so gullible." Sai said, laughing at Kaze's expense. Kaze rolled his eyes and pushed Sai off of the bench. She didn't even seem to notice and started rolling on the ground in laughter. Kaze turned towards Akage and glared at him. Akage shrugged his shoulders.

"Not my fault." He said, smirking, "Just was pretty damn funny to watch you sweat."

"Yeah. Hilarious." Kaze said annoyed. Sai finally started to calm down and managed to get up.

"Come on Kaze. Lighten up." Sai insisted, wiping tears from her eyes, "It was funny."

"Alright fine. It was kinda funny." Kaze admitted, starting to chuckle.

At that moment, Mageru, Kiretsu, and Sota entered the courtyard. Nami and Umi stopped sparring and the others turned their heads to see what they had to say.

"Good to see that you are all having fun." Mageru noted, "I'm guessing that means you're all better."

"Yeah, I guess you could say that." Kaze said.

"Good." Kiretsu said, "Then I guess it's time." Everyone nodded and gathered to get ready to leave. They didn't have anything to take with them except for the few things that the demon brothers had brought along for their little test. Everything else was back at home. They assembled outside the well and said their goodbyes. Souta made Sai and Kaze promise to visit their uncle and keep him updated. They did and proceeded to jump through, one-by-one. Sai was ready to go back. She had a wedding to go to.

The group arrived on the other side with Sai coming through last. The sun was shining brightly on them as they were the only ones in the clearing. Sai took a deep breath of the air.

"It's good to be home." She said.

"Definitely." Kaze agreed. He sniffed the air, "Looks like your dad has caught our scent. He and your mom are moving this way fast."

"Figures." Sai said, laughing.

"Kaze I'm never gonna get used to you like this." Nami said.

"Yeah it's so weird." Umi agreed.

"Not much I can do about it." Kaze told them, "Plus, I think it's kinda fun." There was a rustling at the edge of the clearing and a blur of red. Inuyasha was now standing before them with Kagome getting off of his back. Sai ran to them and took them into a massive embrace.

"Mom! Dad!" She cried out happily.

"Sai!" Her mother cried back, "Oh I'm so glad you're home." Sai exited the embrace.

"It's good to have you back kid." Her dad said, scratching her ears, "Now where's the new addition to the family?" Inuyasha asked, looking past Sai. Kaze raised his clawed hand.

"Right here." He said, smiling. His fangs glinted in the sunshine.

"The ears look good on you." Inuyasha joked. Kagome walked up to him and examined him from head to toe.

"I really do like your eyes now. They look cool on you." She said. Kaze scratched his head, embarrassed.

"Uh... Thanks." He said, unsure of what to say.

"Mom." Sai whined, "Leave him alone."

"Well I have to check up on my son-in-law to-be, especially after this big of a change." Kagome insisted.

"Well then, let's do it at the village. I'm sure Miroku and Sango want to see their children too." Sai pointed out.

"She's probably right." Inuyasha agreed, "Come on Kagome. Let's head back." She nodded and got on his back. Nami got on Akage's and Umi got on Sai's and they followed Inuyasha back to the village.

The village looked exactly the way that they had left it. Exactly the same, except for the wedding decorations, which were everywhere. Those were new. They stopped running and let everyone off once they had entered into the village. Nami, Umi, and Kaze left immediately to talk to their parents, who had been waiting for them. Akage went with them.

"Damn. You guys really went all out." Sai said, looking at all of the stuff that had been set up.

"And it's not finished yet either. We've still got another day's work to do and then your wedding can happen." Kagome said, excitedly.

"The wedding is in two days?!" Sai asked incredulously.

"Yes, of course." Kagome said, as if it were obvious.

"That's really soon." Sai said.

"I know. We figured that you kids would be getting a little anxious, so we decided to move up the date." Kagome said cheerily.

"Thanks... I guess..." Sai said, unsure about whether she was happy about this.

"Don't worry about it." Inuyasha told her, "Come on. We've got lunch prepared for you and the others."

"Who's house are we having it at?" Sai asked, curious.

"Yours." Inuyasha said.

"Mine?!" Sai asked, surprised and confused at the same time.

"Well, yours and Kaze's." Kagome corrected, "Your dad figured that you would want your own house, so he and some of the other men in the village built one while you were away."

"That was fast." Sai said, amazed.

"Sesshomaru helped too." Inuyasha added, almost grudgingly.

"That he did." Kagome verified, laughing slightly, "He'll also be at the wedding with Rin." Sai nodded and smiled.

"Thank you guys. Thank you so much." She said hugging them.

"Oh no problem dear. Now come on. Let's go check out your house and have lunch together." With that they set off for the house. Kaze and the others soon followed. Kaze ran to catch up with Sai and pulled her aside.

"Can you believe this?" Kaze asked.

"Not really." Sai admitted, "I never expected the wedding to be this soon or them to build us a house."

"I know. It's crazy." Kaze said, shaking his head, "But I can't say I'm complaining."

"Yeah, a free house is a nice wedding gift." Sai joked. She sniffed the air.

"Lunch smells good." Sai commented. Kaze chuckled.

"Yes it does. It's still weird to me that I can smell it." He told her.

"You'll get used to it. Now let's get to the house. We're having guests tonight." Sai joked. They rejoined the group and continued on to the house.

Their new home was quaint, but Sai and Kaze both immediately fell in love with it. The house was small like Inuyasha and Kagome's, but it was laid out like Miroku and Sango's. There were three rooms. It had a living room, a kitchen, and a bedroom and each was fully furnished.

"So how do you like it?" Kagome asked.

"I love it." Sai said, emotion strong in her voice, "Thank you so much. This is perfect." Inuyasha smiled, happy that his daughter was happy.

"I'm glad you like it honey." Kagome said, hugging her emotional daughter, "Now come on. The food is ready." She was right. All of it had already been laid out on the table. Everyone took a seat at the table and began to eat. During the entire meal, everyone constantly asked questions about what had happened on the other side. They intentionally left out most of the key events, but otherwise were completely honest. In other words, they carefully avoided every single question. Their parents didn't seem to pick up on it though.

Lunch was finished quickly and everyone dispersed. Sai and Kaze were left to examine their new home, while everyone else was dragged off to prepare for the wedding. After everyone had left and they were alone, Kaze started to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Sai asked curiously.

"It's just that we only just got back from this crazy ordeal and now they're making all of them work to get ready for our wedding." Kaze told her, "It's just kinda funny to me." Sai started to laugh too.

"Yeah. It's funny, but it's kinda harsh too." She said.

"Well, I guess since they don't know about what we actually went through, we can't really judge them. They just think we were away for a few days getting taught a thing or two." Kaze explained.

"Yeah. I guess you're right." Sai admitted, "Now come on. Let's check out the rest of the house."

"I think we should check out the bedroom first." Kaze said, winking. This made Sai blush.

"Come now Kaze. We're waiting. Just hold out a couple more days." Sai told him.

"Fine, but it's going to be difficult." Kaze said.

"I know, I know, but it's going to be better if we wait. Trust me. Once we become mates and I bear your mark, nothing will compare." Sai explained.

"Wait. My mark? What does that mean?" Kaze asked, confused.

"Well, you're half dog demon now, so you've gotta do things our way. When a male finds a female for a mate, they get married. Then, at the end of the wedding ceremony, he bites her on the outside of her right shoulder. This bite morphs into a mating mark, a family crest of sorts. The same mark will appear immediately on the male as well. It completes the bond between the two and makes it unbreakable. My dad calls it 'marking his territory,' which I guess is kinda true. Once it's done, I can't go to anyone else, nor would I ever want to. It's a pretty permanent thing since we don't die of old age and we mate for life." Sai explained.

"That's amazing." Kaze said, astonished, "I had no idea this whole half-demon thing was going to have this many perks."

"Yeah it's kinda nice." Sai admitted, "If you're around open minded people."

"Yeah I guess that's true." Kaze said, realizing what he'd just said, "I'm sorry Sai. I wasn't thinking. I know life is hard for you around people that hate demons."

"Don't worry about it Kaze." Sai reassured him, "You've never had to experience it. Unfortunately, you probably will soon. It's not the best feeling in the world, but you get over it." Kaze simply nodded, mentally kicking himself for being so inconsiderate.

"Come on." Sai said after a moment, "Totosai's scent just showed up. We can go talk to him about getting you a blade."

"You sure?" Kaze asked.

"Yeah, of course. You need a blade." Sai insisted, "We're going to be facing some crazy stuff soon and you can't just rely on your claws."

"I guess you're right." Kaze said.

"It's gonna be really difficult for you to learn you know." Sai told him.

"Why is that?" Kaze asked.

"Your father never had demon blood. You can't rely on his strength to start your training. The blade will have to be forged from your own fang to begin with and the strength will all have to be your own." Sai explained.

"Sai, I don't care about that." Kaze said, "I'll have you by my side. You're my strength now, Sai. As long as you're with me, I'll be fine." Sai blushed.

"Same goes for you too babe." Sai joked, "Now come on. Let's go."

They walked out of the house into the sunshine. Nami and Umi, who were working on putting up decorations saw them and waved happily. Sai and Kaze waved back. Sai turned to Kaze.

"Hey I'll race you to Totosai." Sai challenged, "I bet I can beat you."

"You're on!" Kaze said. Sai immediately took off with Kaze following behind a fraction of a second later. She reached the edge of the village and them jumped high into the air. It almost looked like she was flying. Kaze followed suit since Totosai was still in the air. Both of them began jumping from tree to tree. They were neck and neck. Suddenly Sai's foot hit a branch wrong and she was sent tumbling down to the forest floor. She hit the ground hard and let out a yelp of pain.

"Sai!" Kaze cried as he jumped after her. He found her lying motionless on the ground and ran and knelt by her side. "Sai! Are you okay?" She opened her eyes slowly.

"Gotcha." She said weakly.

"Wha-" Kaze began to say before Sai's leg came around and took his legs out from under him. Within a second, Sai was off the ground and back to running, laughing as she did.

"Hey no fair!" Kaze yelled after her as he got up and began to chase. Sai responded by leaping into the air and landing softly onto Totosai's flying bull.

"I win!" She called at him. He lept and joined her on the bull.

"Yeah, but cheated." Kaze complained.

"I'll make it up to you." She said kissing him on the lips, "Trust me." Sai winked and turned to Totosai who was still shocked in silence.

"Hey Totosai." She said cheerily.

"Um... Hello..." He said, trying to figure out what to say.

"How are you?" Kaze asked.

"I'm... Alright. I guess." Totosai told him, "You look different Kaze." This made both him and Sai laugh.

"True enough." Kaze admitted, "I'm a half-demon now."

"I can see that. Inuyasha informed me about the transformation. It's just a little strange to see it for myself." Totosai explained. Kaze nodded in understanding.

"So, you here for the wedding?" Sai asked.

"Yes, actually." Totosai told them, "I'm also here because Inuyasha insisted that Kaze would need a demon blade. Something about protecting you, or something like that."

"Sounds like my dad." Sai joked, "That's actually why we sought you out too."

"You mean you didn't just come to see me to say hi? I'm offended." He joked.

"Sorry Totosai." Kaze said, laughing along.

"Can't say I expected anything different. Come. We'll discuss it over dinner." Totosai said. They agreed and flew down to the village to spend the rest of the day doing one thing or the other in preparation for the wedding.


	32. Chapter 32

Chapter 32

The next two days past extremely quickly. Everyone was rushing around making last minute preparations. Even Sai and Kaze were being rushed around. They had to inform them about all the traditions, pick out clothing, and fill them in on every other minute detail. It was all very tiring, but through it all, both Sai and Kaze were extremely excited. They were looking forward to the wedding.

At last, the day came. That morning, Sai was woken up early by her mother and Sango. Before Sai could make a sound, the women were rushing her out of bed and into a special bath where she was to soak until they had her dress ready. Sai took the time she had in the bath to think. It was probably going to be the last chance she got all day. She thought about all that she and Kaze had been through. From their time as kids to what had happened recently. Somehow, all that craziness had led to this. It made Sai smile. She wouldn't have traded a moment of it. Well, maybe the moments when they had been trying to kill each other, but she couldn't remember those, so they didn't count. She sank further into the bath and did her best to relax. However, she was trying to do so, her mother and Sango came rushing back into the room and essentially pulled her out of the bath. They threw a towel at her to dry off and laid out the undergarments that she was to wear. She dried off as best she could and proceeded to get dressed in what they had laid out. It was one of the most uncomfortable things that she had ever worn. Sango said that she wouldn't notice it after a while, but Sai doubted that. After she had finished, her mother brought out her dress. Sai's breath caught in her throat. It was the most beautiful white silk kimono she had ever seen.

"It's beautiful." Sai said, getting emotional.

"Hey!" Sango yelled, "No crying. We can't have your eyes getting all puffy." Sai nodded and looked to her mother.

"It is beautiful mom." She said, taking a hold of herself.

"It was mine." Kagome said, "This is what I wore for my wedding."

"Wow that's amazing." Sai said, legitimately amazed that it had survived this long and still looked so beautiful. "Thank you."

"No problem honey." Kagome said, "Now come on. It's time for you to wear it." Sai nodded and the women proceeded to help her put it on.

Kaze was undergoing something similar at the same time. There wasn't so much fuss about what he was to wear, but there was still a lot to do and learn. Inuyasha and Miroku woke him up early and immediately had him eating. They said that he would need his energy. Kaze could guess what they meant by that. After he had eaten, they started going through everything that he had to know, do, or say for the rest of the day. Anything from how to greet guests to how to walk was covered. Then, once they had finished, they quizzed him on it just to make sure that he had it right. Eventually, they have him the thumbs up that he knew all that he should know. Then they started on what he was to wear. That was a whole new long conversation. All of it was very stressful and very tiring, but Kaze knew what he was doing it for and that made it worth it.

Eventually the time for the ceremony came. Sai was rushed off to make final preparations, while Kaze and his father, who was conducting the ceremony, waited in front of the crowd which was made up of the entire village. Kaze could make out Sai's scent, but because of tradition, he hadn't seen her all day. That would change soon.

Sai heard music start to play. That was her cue to leave the house and walk down the aisle. Her father took her hand. She looked to him with nervous eyes. He smiled at her.

"Come on. It's time. You're gonna be fine." He assured her. She nodded and tightened her grip on his hand.

"How do I look dad?" Sai asked.

"You look beautiful." He told her lovingly. Sai took a deep breath and nodded again.

"Let's go." She said, smiling. Her father turned to the door and they began to walk. They opened the door revealing themselves to everyone assembled for the wedding. Sai saw Kaze's eyes widen and could tell that his heart had skipped a beat. That made her smile. She really was beautiful.

Kaze legitimately could not breath the moment Sai stepped from the house. He was just so struck by how beautiful she was. Everything about her was perfect. It made him feel unworthy to simply be on the same planet as her and yet, somehow, she had agreed to be his wife. Kaze finally forced himself to take a breath. Sai's father had just gotten her to the place where Kaze was standing and she took her place by him. She gazed lovingly at him through the thin veil that covered her face. He returned it. Miroku started the ceremony. The words honestly all blurred together in Kaze's head. He said everything he needed to say and meant every word, but the only thing that stick out in his mind was when he said "I do." Kaze waited for Sai to say it back. It seemed like an eternity for his father to ask her to say it.

"I do." She said.

"Then, by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride." Miroku said, finally. Kaze lifted the veil that covered Sai's face and leaned into kiss her. Their lips met. Hers were soft and welcoming. It felt like every loving thought or feeling that they had ever shared was conveyed through that kiss. Everyone clapped as they kissed, but there was still one last thing that they had to do. They broke away from each other. Sai pulled down the right shoulder of her kimono to reveal her bare skin. Kaze bared his fangs, leaned in, and bit into her flesh.

Sai felt the teeth enter her shoulder, but she felt no pain. Instead, she felt pure ecstasy. She shivered with pleasure. Kaze's fangs left her skin. Blood flowed from the entry points, but did not fall freely down her shoulder. It began to form a circle and spread inside and started to form itself into an image. A crescent moon was formed with two crossed swords in the background. Once it had finished creating the crest, the blood seeped into her skin and formed a black tattoo of sorts. Kaze revealed his shoulder to show that the same mark had etched itself into his skin as well. Their bond was complete and unbreakable. Sai smiled wide and Kaze returned it. She leaned in and they rubbed noses, just like dogs, but they didn't care what anyone else thought. They were in love and this was what felt right. The crowd clapped even louder than before and, just like that, the ceremony was over. Sai and Kaze were married. Husband and wife. Mates for life.

The reception for Sai and Kaze's wedding went well into the night. It was a crazy night. Drinking was heavy and partying was heavier. Sai and Kaze's parents seemed to be the most drunk out of anyone there and essentially passed out midway through the night. They were carried to their homes by Nami and Umi. Sai and Kaze, however, were inseparable throughout the night. They got a little drunk, but they were mainly concerned with each other. All they wanted to do was to be close. They danced, talked, and drank. Anything, as long as they did it together.

Eventually, Sai and Kaze both got sick of the party. They wanted to go home and be alone together. Nami and Umi picked up on this pretty easily. They approached Sai and Kaze.

"I'm guessing you two don't really wanna be here right now, do you?" Umi said.

"How could you tell?" Sai asked sarcastically.

"Just a hunch." Nami joked, "Come on. We can sneak you out of here and get you to your house."

"That would be amazing." Kaze said. They motioned for them to follow. Sai took Kaze by the hand and they did. They made their way through the crowd, keeping as low a profile as they could. A villager looked like she was going to try to talk to Sai and Kaze, so Nami broke off and distracted her. Umi carried on the stealth mission and eventually got them to the door of their house.

"Well my friends, this is as far as I go." She said, taking an exaggerated, "I wish you two a good night." Sai laughed.

"Thanks Umi." She said, hugging her friend, "And tell Nami I said thanks too."

"Will do." She responded cheerily, "Speaking of my sister, I should probably go save her from whatever conversation she's gotten herself embroiled into." And with that she ran off.

Once Umi was out if sight, Sai turned around to enter the house. Suddenly, Kaze picked her up bridal style and carried her through the doorway. Sai was giggling uncontrollably.

"Kaze, this isn't necessary." She told him, still laughing.

"I know, but you like it don't you?" Kaze said. She nodded and kissed him teasingly.

"Come on. I think it's time we checked out the bedroom." Sai said seductively.

"I've got no objections to that." Kaze said, sniffing the air. He smiled wide, "Hey that scent's back." Sai blushed.

"Hell yeah it is." Sai said with a teasing smile, "Now hurry up. I'm tired of waiting." He responded by carrying her into the bedroom with all haste.

Kaze put Sai down gently on the bed. He kissed her and began to take off her kimono. Sai's thoughts were a blur. The wine might have had a little bit to do with that, but she was pretty sure it was mostly the amount of hormones that were flooding her system. She was excited beyond belief. There wasn't anything she wanted more in the world than to do this right here and right now with her mate. She began to undress Kaze while he did the same to her. It was obvious that he liked that. Before long, they were both naked in front of each other. Sai motioned for Kaze to come to her. He didn't waste a second. Their bodies collided in a passionate embrace. They kissed. Kaze had his arms wrapped tightly around Sai's body and his fingers entangled in her hair. She was doing the same thing to him. Sai felt Kaze enter into to her and a flood of pleasure rocked her body. She couldn't help but arch her back into the air and cry out in ecstasy. Kaze smiled and began kissing every part of her body that he could get to. Her neck, her breasts, her lips. Eventually, his lips even found her mark and sent even more waves of pleasure crashing through her body. The whole experience was the greatest thing that Sai had ever felt and she could tell that Kaze felt the same way. It went on like this for hours with never a dull moment. One thing Sai could say about Kaze was that he had endurance and she liked that.


	33. Chapter 33

Chapter 33

Sai woke up the next morning with Kaze's arms around her. She felt wonderful. Last nights events ran through her mind. The reception was mostly a blur, but what happened afterwards was fresh and clear. Sai shifted her position in bed. Kaze stirred.

"Hey babe. You awake?" He asked, sleep heavy in his voice.

"Yeah." She said, "Did I wake you?"

"Don't worry about it. As long as it's you that I wake up next to, it's alright." He kissed her neck and began to feel up her body. Sai smiled and turned around in his arms.

"Again huh?" She asked, smiling.

"Hey last night was amazing." Kaze said, "Plus, that smell is still all over you."

"You know it is." Sai winking, kissed him, and rolled over on top of him. They were loud enough that Sai wouldn't have been surprised if everyone could hear them this early in the morning. Then again, they were all probably sleeping off hangovers from the night before.

Once both of them had finished, they laid in bed side by side. Sai had her head laid on Kaze's chest.

"So what you wanna do today?" Kaze asked.

"Stay here." Sai said, yawning.

"Yeah, I could go for that too." Kaze told her, "But I feel like we should do something special for our honeymoon."

"I kinda like what we've been doing." Sai said, snuggling closer to Kaze's well muscled body.

"Oh don't worry. That's gonna keep happening." Kaze laughed, "But I want to treat you, take you somewhere nice. You're my woman, my mate, and I love you. I'd do anything for you, so just name me a place you want to go and we'll go."

"Kaze, where'd you learn to be this charming? Makes a girl horny as hell." Sai joked.

"I've got two sisters, remember? Both of whom are infamous for their... Exploits with men. I've learned a few things." Kaze told her.

"You just better not have learned one certain habit." Sai threatened.

"I don't know..." Kaze said. His hand snaked down her bare back. Sai knew what he was doing and let it happen with a smile.

"As long as it's me you're feeling up, I kinda like it." Sai admitted.

"Oh really?" Kaze said, intrigued.

"Well I am just a horny teenage girl at heart." She raised her head off his chest and kissed him and winked. "But I'm also a really jealous one, so keep your hand on my ass and no one else's."

"You don't have to worry about that babe. I don't think I could live with myself if I hurt you like that." Kaze told her.

"Good." Sai said happily. She got up out of bed and threw some clothes at Kaze. "Now come on. As much as I want to stay here all day, we've gotta pick up your sword from Totosai." Kaze nodded and disappointedly looked on as Sai covered up her flawless body with pesky clothing. He sighed and got up out of bed to do the same.

Once they had gotten dressed, they walked out into the sunshine. The village streets were empty. Empty except for two certain twins that were looking at them with knowing grins.

"Sounds like you two had a good morning." Nami said.

"And a good night." Umi added. Both Sai and Kaze blushed.

"You guys heard that huh?" Sai asked, embarrassed.

"If they weren't still asleep, so would half the village. Fortunately enough for you, it seems that we and Akage were the only ones who didn't get all that drunk last night." Nami explained.

"Akage heard too?" Kaze asked.

"Probably." Umi said. Both Sai and Kaze sighed.

"Hey guys we're not judging." Umi assured them, "We don't really care and fully approve of what you two are doing."

"Thanks Umi." Sai said sarcastically.

"No problem my little screamer." Umi said in her typical cheery voice. Both of them sighed again in defeat. They could tell that the twins probably weren't going to let this go for a while.

"Well it's been nice discussing our very personal life with you, so now if you'll excuse us, we have things to do." Kaze told his sisters.

"Oh I'm sure you do." Nami said, grinning. Neither Sai nor Kaze bothered to respond. They simply sped off in the direction of Totosai's scent.

Once they had gotten far enough away, Sai turned her head to Kaze.

"So my guess is that we're never going to hear to end of this." Sai said.

"Probably not." Kaze agreed, "At least not for a while. Maybe after Akage proposes to Nami, it might go away."

"And how long do you think that will be?" Sai asked.

"Who knows." Kaze said, "That kid has no idea what he's doing."

"Yeah I know." Sai agreed.

"So what kind of abilities do you think Totosai is going to put in my blade?" Kaze asked, changing the topic.

"Don't know." Sai admitted, "Probably something that will complement mine since we're mates and all."

"Well your swords affect time and earth. What complements that?" Kaze asked.

"Guess we'll find out." Sai told him. With that they continued their way to the place where Totosai lived.

The mountain was steep and would have been impossible for any human to get up. That's exactly why Totosai had moved there. He wanted no inference from the empire. For Sai and Kaze, however, the trek was more or less easy. They reached Totosai's workshop in no time and walked calmly inside. The demon was asleep in a chair.

"Totosai!" Sai called out, "Wake up old man!" He still didn't get up. Sai walked over and knocked him in the head just hard enough to wake him up, which was pretty hard.

"I'm awake! I'm awake!" Totosai yelled, rubbing his head, "There's no need for that." Sai rolled her eyes.

"You missed the wedding you know." She accused.

"Did I now?" Totosai said, scratching his head, "I guess I did. Well I have your wedding present. That sword you asked for is leaning against the wall.

"My sword?" Kaze asked, turning to the blade.

"Yes. The one made from your fang." Totosai told him, "It's a straight blade of the same style as Sai's."

"What is it's name?" Kaze questioned as he picked it up.

"Jinsei. The blade of life." Totosai said, "It is vampiric blade of sorts. It gets stronger every time you slay a demon. From your power alone it is strong, but it has limitless potential to get stronger."

"That's amazing!" Kaze said. Totosai nodded.

"Plus it will make it easier for you to learn. Most have to deal with the full strength of the blade from the beginning or rely on the strength of an ancestor. The blade's ability, however, will allow you to adjust to the power as it grows along with your own." Totosai explained, "In addition, it is also the perfect complement to the blades of your mate. You now have power over matter, time, and life. Quite the combination."

"Indeed." Kaze agreed, "Thank you very much for this Totosai."

"Don't worry about it. Now you will need to learn the abilities of the sword. As with all demon blades, it has the ability to produce sword pressure, but this blade can also use a technique called the Blood Scar. Somewhat like the Wind Scar, but especially devastating to living things, though it will still do damage to the surrounding environment. Its ultimate technique, however, is called Reaper's Breath. This attack creates hurricane force winds that will steal the life force out of anything you allow it to. It can also be concentrated into a direct attack." Totosai explained. Kaze simply nodded, taking in all of the information.

"Seems like you have a pretty powerful blade in your hands Kaze." Sai said, impressed, "Nice work Totosai."

"That's high praise coming from you Sai. I'll take it for what it's worth." The old blade master said with a smile, "Now go on. Get out of here. I've got work to do." Both Sai and Kaze nodded, waved goodbye, and set off at a run out of the workshop. When they reached the edge of the cliff, both of them jumped. They were flying through the air, falling hundreds of feet. Where they finally touched down, they immediately hit the ground running.

As they ran, a scent filled their lungs. It was oppressive and thick in the air.

"You smell that?" Sai called out to Kaze.

"Yeah." He responded, "Demons. Humans too. Lots of them."

"The demons aren't giving off any aura and the humans reek of blood and smoke." Sai pointed out.

"Must be one Konton's armies. Never seen him make humans and demons work together before." Kaze said, pondering the situation.

"Well, they aren't heading towards the village and can't sense us from where they are. What do you wanna do?" Sai asked.

"I don't know." Kaze admitted, "Let's get back to the village. We need to tell the others about this." Sai nodded and the two sped up their pace.

It wasn't long before the village came into view. Their friends and parents were waiting for them. Sai and Kaze reached them quickly and could easily discern the concerned looks on all of their faces. Sai looked to her father.

"You smell it too?" She asked.

"Yeah." He said simply.

"You're not planning to go after it are you?" Kagome asked, worriedly.

"Kagome, you don't need to worry." Sango assured her, "These kids have taken down larger armies than this before."

"Yeah and my daughter almost got killed." She shot back.

"Mom!" Sai interjected, "We don't know what we're gonna do yet. We're not strong enough to face Konton and we still don't have any leads on whatever this embodiment of love is. Since it's likely that that army was heading back to Konton, it's unlikely that we will follow it now." A look of relief came over Kagome's face.

"So what are we gonna do?" Umi asked.

"Well, we've really only got one logical option." Akage pointed out.

"We've gotta find this embodiment of love." Nami said.

"That would be great to find, but it's like Sai said. We have no idea where to look." Kaze said.

"I believe I can help you out with that." Came a familiar voice from behind them. Everyone turned to see Sesshomaru approaching them.

"Sesshomaru?" Inuyasha said, questioningly.

"Hello little brother." Sesshomaru greeted him coldly.

"What do you mean you can help us?" Sai asked directly. Sesshomaru responded by pulling a sealed scroll from his robe. He threw it to Sai, who caught it easily.

"Check the symbol on the seal. I think you'll find it familiar." He told them. Sai did as she was told. Her breath caught in her throat at what she saw. Kaze noticed.

"Sai, what's wrong?" He asked, concern thick in his voice.

"It's... It's... It's that symbol. The one that was burned into the inn." She said, looking up to Sesshomaru, "Where did you get this?"

"That's unimportant." He said, "What is, though, is what's inside. That will help you beat Konton."

"If you had this information Sesshomaru, then why haven't you acted on it and gone after him yourself. Don't put my daughter in danger." Inuyasha growled.

"You're a fool Inuyasha!" Sesshomaru barked back, "I have an empire to protect. Konton's armies are constantly at my border. The one that just passed by this area is nothing compared to what I deal with on a daily basis! I cannot leave my land to crumble! I cannot leave my family!" This stopped Inuyasha in his tracks. He immediately calmed down and nodded in understanding.

"That last reason is one I can respect Sesshomaru." He said calmly. Sesshomaru nodded and turned to leave.

"Hold up Sesshomaru!" Sai yelled at him. He stopped and turned to face her.

"What's in this scroll and how is it going to help us?" Sai demanded.

"You'll have to open it and find out for yourself Saiai." He told her, "After all, this does center around you." With those final words, he flew off leaving everyone stunned into silence.

After a few moments, Sai was the first to find her voice again.

"Dammit!" She cursed loudly, "Why the hell does everyone keep saying that this is all on me? I mean, what makes me so damn special?!" Kaze walked up to her and put his arm around her. She jumped in surprise at first, but eventually relaxed and buried her face into Kaze's chest and began to cry. Kaze pulled her in close and began to strike her hair.

"Hey it's gonna be alright. You hear me? It's gonna be fine." He soothed, "This isn't all on you. You've got me and Nami and Umi and Akage. We're all here for you and we won't let you go through this alone. No matter what, we'll be right beside you." Sai removed her tear soaked face from Kaze's chest and looked up at him with desperate eyes.

"You mean that?" She asked as fresh tears continued to fall.

"Absolutely." He assured her, pulling her into a tighter embrace.

"You're the best Kaze." She said before burying her face into Kaze's chest once again with a renewed batch of tears flowing straight into his clothes.

"C'mon Sai." He said, picking her up bridal style, "Let's get home, okay. We can check out whatever that scroll says tomorrow. Right now, you need to relax." And so they did just that. Kaze took Sai home, followed by all of her friends and family. They spent the rest of the day comforting her and assuring her that she would never be alone and that they could win this fight. Well into the night, Sai finally fell asleep in Kaze's arms. Once that happened, everyone returned to their own homes and Kaze quickly followed his mate into sleep.


	34. Chapter 34

**To everyone that has made it this far, I thank you and love you! You are the best! Please keep reading and to the five people that ever see this chapter, REVIEW! It would make a new writer very happy. I want everyone's input so I can make it better and, hopefully, get it to your standards. Love you guys and please keep reading. Something cool might happen soon... I just have to think it up first...**

Chapter 34

The sun rose the next morning and burned into Kaze's eyes through the window. He did his best to shield his eyes from the bright light. It didn't work, so he rolled over onto his other side to escape the brightness. That's when he realized something was wrong. He was alone. Sai wasn't in bed with him. That's when the ground shook. Everything in the house shook with it and Kaze heard some things fall to the floor. He sniffed the air searching for any trace of danger. There wasn't any, but Kaze instantly recognized the tell-tale scent of two certain demon blades and their owner.

"DRAGON RIFT!" Sai roared. The waves of light erupted from her swords and slammed into the tree line. It left a wide swath of destruction in front of her. This wasn't helping her frustration. She threw the blades into ground making them stick out at an angle from where they stuck. Sai found the nearest tree that was still standing and ran to it. Sai flexed her claws reading for the attack.  
"IRON REAVER SOUL STEALER!" She brought her claws down, bringing the tree down with them.  
"Dammit!" She cried out in anger and frustration. The tree beside the one she had just clawed down was her next target. Sai clenched her hand into a fist and slammed it straight into the trunk. The tree broke easily under the immense force and was sent flying back until it hit another tree and broke in half. She brought her arm back to do this to another tree that was nearby. However, her fist never connected with the bark. Instead, it slammed straight into Kaze's palm. He had gotten there in a fraction if a second and had a look of concern and worry all over his face.  
"K-Kaze?" Sai stuttered, suddenly feeling all of her muscles go limp. Her fist dropped to her side and her face dropped to stare at the ground. "What are you doing here?"  
"Making sure you were alright." He said, "And I'm glad I did. Otherwise we wouldn't have a forest for much longer." Sai looked up at Kaze. He was smiling warmly at her. She laughed half-heartedly.  
"Yeah, I guess you're right." She said.  
"So are you alright?" Kaze asked.  
"I thinks so." Sai told him, "Just had to get a little bit of stress out."  
"I can see that." Kaze said, surveying the damage, "C'mon. Let's get some food. Then we can look at that scroll." Sai nodded and let Kaze put his arm around her and walk her home.

The two ate breakfast together before being joined by Nami, Umi, and Akage. None of them seemed to know about Sai's outburst that morning. Obviously they hadn't seen the devastation to the woods nearby. Sai was okay with that, though. Once they arrived, Sai immediately got up and retrieved the scroll that Sesshomaru had given them the day before.  
"Alright." Sai said, taking a seat in the circle that had formed and setting the scroll down in the middle of it, "Moment of truth." She broke the seal that held the scroll closed and unfurled the parchment to reveal a map that was written on in several places.  
"What is this?" Nami asked, scanning over the thing.  
"Looks like a map." Umi said.  
"Well I know that." Nami shot back sarcastically, "What I meant was a map of what."  
"Not sure." Kaze said, "But what I do know is that the symbol we are looking for is on the far eastern tip of Japan." He pointed to the symbol drawing everyone's attention to it.  
"So that's where we have to go?" Akage asked.  
"More than likely." Sai said.  
"That's really far away." Nami pointed out, "It's going to take forever to get there."  
"Not quite." Came a voice from behind them. They all turned to face the familiar voice. "Your mother sent me a message that you might need my help, so I came as fast as I could." Kohaku said.  
"Uncle Kohaku?" Kaze said, surprised that he was there. He was quickly followed by the excited cries of his sisters.  
"Uncle Kohaku!" They cried out in unison.  
"The one and only." He said, smiling, "You're looking different Kaze." This made Kaze blush a bit and scratch the back of his head.  
"Yeah, just a little bit." He said, laughing lightly.  
"Well, it's obvious that you guys do need some help and I can definitely provide that." Kohaku told them.  
"How?" Kaze asked.  
"Follow me." Kohaku responded, motioning for everyone to get up and come outside, "I've got just the thing for you guys." They followed him out of the house and watched him closely. Kohaku whistled loudly causing it to echo throughout the village. With seconds, a giant cat with two tails came flying down from the sky.  
"Kirara!" Nami and Umi screamed together as they ran to greet the familiar cat demon upon her landing. They began to pet her and shower her with affection. Even Sai and Kaze got in on it. All the while, Kirara purred happily since she hasn't seen any of them in a long time. After a while, Nami turned to Kohaku.  
"So what was it that you had for us?" She asked.  
"Kirara." He answered simply, "She is my gift to you. You guys need her much more than I do, especially considering your need to travel quickly."  
"Are you serious?" Umi asked incredulously, "That's amazing!" This made Kohaku smile, but after a moment, his face turned serious. Everyone picked up on the change in mood and quieted down.  
"What is it uncle?" Kaze asked.  
"You must move quickly. Konton is building up his armies. He is making bolder steps than ever before and launching assaults in even the most powerful demon lords." Kohaku explained.  
"You mean like Sesshomaru?" Sai asked. Kohaku nodded his head.  
"However," Kohaku continued, "what is most disturbing is that some of the demon lords are joining under his banner. The demon lords themselves disappear soon after the alliance is made, but Konton keeps the armies."  
"So he's eliminating all demonic competition while at the same time, increasing the size of his demonic army? That's pretty smart to say the least." Nami pointed out, "Do other humans know about this?"  
"Very few." Kohaku told them, "Only clans of demon slayers have accepted the fact. Most common folk are too foolish to realize what is truly going on."  
"Well then, we should get going then." Kaze said. The rest of the group agreed and they began to prepare to leave the village.

After everything had been readied and tearful goodbyes had been said, the group left the village. Sai, Kaze, and Akage were running along the ground while Nami and Umi rode on Kirara. The running would not tire the half-demons and Kirara could fly for days without getting fatigued. All of this made progress much faster for the group. Without any obstructions, they would make it to the eastern coast where the map had pointed them to go in about a week. However, an unobstructed journey is never possible when it comes to powerful demons. The group knew this and was vigilant every moment that they traveled. Luckily, the first day was danger free.

They found a place to camp just off the road along which they were traveling. Sai agreed to take first watch. She would be followed by Kaze, Akage, Nami, and Umi who would do it with Kirara. The stars were beautiful that night. Sai stared at them the tree she was sitting in when suddenly it's branches rustled. She turned round with her hand flying to her blades, but was relieved to be faced with Kaze.  
"Did I startle you?" He asked, concerned.  
"A little bit." Sai admitted, "But don't worry about it. I guess I'm a little jumpy. You should get some sleep." Kaze chuckled.  
"Can't." He told her, "It feels wrong without my mate." Sai smiled.  
"Well then, I guess you're just gonna have to stay with me here in this tree." She joked.  
"I guess so. Give me some room and I'll join you." He said. Sai did and Kaze jumped over to her branch. Kaze sat against the trunk of the tree and let Sai sit in his lap and rest against his chest. He emitted a low growl from his chest that made Sai laugh. She returned the pleased growl and snuggled up closer to him.  
"I thought you didn't like being in trees." Sai commented after a while.  
"Yeah I know. It's like there's something different about me now, but for the life of me I can't place what it is." Kaze joked. He grazed his fangs over her neck making her laugh.  
"A mystery indeed." She said. Suddenly, her face became serious, "What's more of a mystery is what's waiting for us ahead."  
"Yeah no kidding." Kaze agreed, "We've got no idea what we're up against."  
"You think we have a chance?" Sai asked him. Kaze was taken back in surprise.  
"Of course we do Sai. It's Konton that doesn't have a chance. He's got a few army, while we've got the only half-demon priestess to ever live. Not to mention that all of us got exponentially more powerful after our time in the future. I say that we got this one easily." He told her confidently.  
"Thanks Kaze." Sai said, grabbing his hands that were wrapped around her, "I needed to hear that."  
"No problem Sai. Just don't ever forget that it's gonna be us winning this war." Kaze said, kissing neck. Sai growled in pleasure. Kaze sighed.  
"Dammit." He said in a defeated voice.  
"What?" Sai asked confused.  
"You're giving off that scent again and it's driving me crazy, but we can't do anything about it." He explained.  
"Who said anything about not being able to do anything about it?" Sai said with a mischievous look in her eye, "We just have to be a little quieter than normal and I think I can manage that."  
"I think I can too." He said with a smile. Sai winked and then pounced on him.

Despite their efforts, Nami awoke to hear the conversation and the events that followed. It made her laugh. She had never taken Sai to be one to so adventurous. Kaze truly did complete her friend. After it was clear that they were done, since she didn't want to interrupt the couple again, she got up to relieve them of their duties of watching over the camp.  
"Hey you two!" She whispered loudly into the tree that they ha returned to, "You're times up. Come on down and get some sleep." In response, the two immediately dropped from the branches and landed quietly on the ground. Nami saw their ruffled hair and relaxed appearance and smiled.  
"Looks like you two had fun on watch." She joked. Nami winked as both of their faces turned from relaxed to surprised. Before they could try to come up with something to say, she held up her hand to tell them to stop.  
"Get some sleep okay. You two need it. Don't worry. My lips are sealed." Then, without waiting for a response, Nami jumped onto the lowest branch of the tree an began to make her way higher. Sai and Kaze, on the other hand, sighed in relief and hurried off to sleep.


	35. Chapter 35

**Sorry this chapter is a little short, but I felt like it was a good place to end the chapter. Going to try to make my next one a bit longer. Now to the story!**

Chapter 35

Umi and Kirara woke everyone up early that morning. Nobody liked it, but they knew that they had to do it in order to make good progress that day. After a quick breakfast, they were back on the road. Sai was glad to see that Nami had kept her word. Nobody else seemed to know about the night before. She was grateful for that and so was Kaze.

"So," Umi said after a while of traveling in mostly silence, "do you guys think that we're actually going to get to stay in a village tonight?"

"Possibly." Sai told her, "This road seems to be well used by merchants. The wind is at our backs, though, so I can't smell if we're getting close to one."

"Do you think we'll even be allowed in a village now?" Akage asked.

"What do you mean?" Nami questioned, confused.

"Well, now the number of half-demons outnumber the number of humans in the group. It looks kinda strange for three half-demons and a cat demon to be traveling with two human girls." Akage explained.

"Oh, I guess you're right. That could be a problem." Nami admitted.

"Maybe not." Sai said, "Mageru taught me a little something before we left. I guess this is what he wanted us to use it for."

"What did he teach you?" Kaze asked.

"How to conceal our demonic side." Sai told him. Everyone gave her a confused look. "I know. I didn't know it was possible either."

"How do you do it?" Kaze asked.

"We have to use our spiritual power to temporarily overwhelm our demonic aura and essentially hide it. It would make us appear human, though we would still have heightened senses and abilities. Not as strong as normal, but still better than most humans." Sai explained.

"That sounds great, but we've got one problem." Akage pointed out, "I don't have spiritual energy."

"Mageru thought about that." Sai told him, "He said that one of us can use our energy to hide you. Thing is that you'll need to stay close to whoever is hiding you. Otherwise, anyone with any experience with spiritual energy will pick up on it. That's why I think Nami should be the one to hide you."

"I could do that." Nami said, perking up at the idea.

"Not a bad idea, Sai." Akage told her, smiling.

"How close do we have to be?" Nami asked suggestively.

"The closer the better, but stay at least within a few steps of each other." Sai said.

"I like closer." Nami said, winking at Akage.

"You guys are crazy." Kaze commented to himself. Only Sai heard it and it made her chuckle.

Suddenly, the wind changed the direction. Sai and Kaze took the opportunity to sniff the air for any signs of a village. They weren't met with a scent they wanted. Both of their faces quickly became serious. Umi was the first to notice.

"What is it guys?" She asked.

"This isn't a village scent." Kaze said, almost absent mindedly.

"What is it then?" Akage questioned.

"Blood." Sai growled, "Blood and smoke."

"You mean..." Akage trailed off. Sai nodded. The demon purge had reached this area.

"Dammit!" Akage cursed, "I'm going to kill every single one of them!"

"No." Kaze said suddenly, "We won't kill them unless we absolutely have to."

"Why the hell not?" Akage demanded.

"They've been deceived. They think that we are the enemy. Konton has exploited their fears and is using them for his purposes. Killing them won't hurt him, it will save him the trouble of doing it later." Kaze explained.

"So you're just going to let them go and kill more innocent people?" Akage accused.

"No, I've got a plan." Kaze told him.

"What's your plan Kaze?" Sai asked.

"It involves a lot on your part Sai." He told her, "Are you up to it?"

"Of course." She assured him.

"Good. So, if they have been deceived by a demon, then obviously their senses are being dulled or their minds are being taken advantage of by Konton's powerful demonic aura." Kaze explained, "So to bring them back to reality and make them realize what it is that they are doing, we need to purify their minds."

"That's going to take a lot of spiritual energy." Nami pointed out. Kaze nodded.

"We're going to need to work fast. Otherwise, we may end up having to fight and it could turn into a bloodbath like it did at our village." He said. Sai shivered from the memory.

"I really don't want to have to do that again. It made me feel dirty." She said. Kaze nodded before continuing.

"I think our best bet would be the purify the air around them before having Sai rush through the ranks and sending out bursts of energy to purify the soldiers." He explained.

"Sounds good to me." Sai said. Akage clearly didn't agree, but he kept his mouth shut. Even he realized that murdering a bunch of murderers wouldn't make the situation any better.

It was about noon by the time they reached the place where the army had set up a camp. They hid in the nearby woods while they worked out the last few details of their plan. Luckily for them, the army didn't seem to be marching today. There were tents everywhere along with a massive one in the center. Sai assumed that it was the command station for the camp. It didn't take long for this assumption to be confirmed. The general followed by several advisors exited the tent and began to make rounds around the rest of the camp.

"So that's the commander, eh?" Akage commented, sounding a little disappointed.

"Were you expecting Konton?" Kaze asked, laughing a bit.

"Not really. Just hoping so that I give him a little shock." He said sparking lighting between his fingers.

"I can understand that." Sai said, coming over and taking a seat by them. Nami and Umi followed shortly after.

"So everybody got the plan?" Nami asked, looking at her friends.

"Yeah." Akage said, "Kaze and I will create a distraction while Sai gets into position the purify the air. You girls will be running guard for her." Everyone else nodded in agreement that they understood what was expected of them.

"Alright then." Nami said, standing, "Let's get it done." Kaze and Akage immediately ran off. Sai summoned her priestess blade and stood next to the twins.

"You ready?" Umi asked. Sai smirked confidently.

"I've faced worse." She said. At that moment, they heard a massive crack of thunder followed shouts and taunts.

"Well, I guess that's our cue." Nami said, "Let's go." And with that, they ran off towards the tent camp as well.

Sai found the army in disarray. It was just as they had planned. She raised her blade into the air and began to twirl it around while it built up spiritual energy in the air spinning above it. After it had built up enough, Sai let the wind loose and allowed it to consume the entire camp. The second the purified air touched the soldiers, most stopped moving while others dropped to their knees clutching their heads. Sai didn't waste any time. She used her superhuman speed and began to run through the camp, sending out bursts of spiritual energy to purify what ever remained of the demonic influence over the soldiers. It was working very well. The men didn't seem to know what was going on, but Sai could feel the demonic presence in them be purified.

It didn't take Sai long to reach the center of the camp. However, the moment the command tent came clearly into view, a smell filled Sai's lungs that she hadn't been expecting. She stopped dead in her tracks and uttered a low, murderous growl. The flap to the tent opened. Sai immediately raised her sword to the ready and increased the volume of her growl so that anyone in the vicinity could have heard it.

"How impolite my dear Saiai. We are just going to have to teach you some manners, now aren't we." Came the familiar, hateful voice that had haunted Sai's dreams as its owner exited the tent.

"I'm going to kill you." Sai threatened, meaning every word, "I'm going to rip out your damn throat Konton."


	36. Chapter 36

Chapter 36

Sai and Konton stood across from each other, simply staring down their opponent, for what seemed like a long time. Then Konton smiled.

"You think you can kill me? You? Kill me? The very idea is preposterous!" The demon emperor began to laugh. It was strong laugh, as though he was truly amused by Sai's threat. However, he soon turned back to Sai. His cocky smile was gone and replaced by a scowl. "No. No, I will kill you. You will by my trophy you miserable half-breed!" Sai's growl intensified, but then, after a moment, she stopped. She smirked, dismissed her blade, and flexed her claws. Konton couldn't believe his eyes.

"You're going to fight me without a weapon?" Konton asked, the amusement returning to his eyes, "Pride going to your head Saiai?"

"Not quite." Sai said in a low, threatening voice.

As the last syllable left her lips, Sai's eyes began to turn red. It was like blood was soaking into them. Purple demon markings appeared on her face while her claws and fangs began to elongate significantly. She lowered her head and allowed her hair to cover her face.

"You're purposefully entering into your full demon form?" Konton asked, unable to believe his eyes. Then he began to chuckle, "After all the trouble it caused you last time, you're going into it willingly this time. Are you that desperate? You are willing to risk your friends lives by letting your mind be taken over?"

"Wrong again bastard." Sai growled. She lifted her head revealing her face to a stunned Konton. The whites of her eyes now glowed a violent red, but the rest was still normal and golden.

"W-what?" Konton stammered, fear entering his voice, "What the hell are you?"

"Your worst nightmare." Sai growled. She raised her claws and got into an attack stance, " Now die!" At that instant, Sai moved forward faster than Konton could register. He barely had time to react and try to jump out of the way before Sai's claws came down and left a nasty gash across his right arm and chest. Konton stumbled as he landed away from the girl. Sai raised her claws to her mouth and licked some of the blood off of them. She smiled wickedly.

"Your blood tastes good for one that smells so foul." She said menacingly, "I guess I'll have to spill more of it. A lot more."

"Just try it half-breed!" He shouted, clutching his wounded chest.

"Gladly." At that moment, Sai essentially disappeared because of how fast she was moving. The demon emperor looked around confused.

"Behind you." Sai whispered roughly into his ear before stabbing her claws through the demon's stomach. Konton let out a grunt from the pain. Sai retracted her hand from his body and disappeared again. She reappeared an instant later in front of Konton.

"You ready to die?" Sai asked, smirking. He scowled back.

"You really don't get it do you?" He said, his voice struggling from the pain, "You cannot win."

"Doesn't seem that way to me right now." Sai told him.

"Hmpf! Ignorant half-breed! I cannot be killed while the one thing that allows humanity to function is still in my possession." He yelled at her, "How do you think I've been able to control these massive armies of people? It would be impossible if I didn't hold the one thing that makes pathetic mortals have hope and hang on to their worthless lives." Realization slammed into Sai harder than any punch she'd ever taken.

"You mean the embodiment of love." She said, unable to believe her stupidity.

"Ahh now the mutt understands." Konton said in a mocking tone, "Yes. I am unbeatable while it is in my possession. You may know where I keep it hidden, but I assure you that you will never obtain it. I keep it well guarded. No amount of force will ever be able to get to it. I cannot lose Saiai. The sooner you realize that, the sooner you can give up and stop struggling so hard to win an impossible victory. Then I can end your worthless lives." Sai lowered her head. She looked utterly dejected and beaten down. Her shoulders began to shake as though she were crying. Konton, thinking he had won, began to walk towards her. He drew his sword to end her life, but as he raised it to deliver the death blow, he heard it. Sai was laughing. It was quiet at first, but quickly became louder. Konton scowled.

"What's so funny girl?" He demanded.

"That you think that I, the daughter of the great Inuyasha, would give up so easily." She told him as she lifted her head to look the demon in the eyes, "Oh I'll kill you alright. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but one day. And when that day comes, I will enjoy watching you die slowly at my feet. You know why? Because I'm the only one that can kill you and I want to revel in that you evil bastard!" As she spat the last word out of her mouth she brought her claws around hard and slashed Konton deeply through the stomach.

"You damn miserable half-breed!" He spat send out a mist of blood from his mouth. Konton raised his arm to the sky and chanted something unintelligible. Suddenly brilliant flash of light erupted from his palm and engulfed the area. Sai was forced to cover her eyes to avoid being blinded. The light quickly faded and, after a moment, Sai looked up and began to curse bitterly. Konton was gone and had only left a circle of scorched earth and a lot of blood on the ground to show that he had even been there at all. That and his disgusting scent was everywhere.

Sai heard something move behind her and she whirled around, claws first, to face it. She was met by the surprised face of all of her friends.

"Nice to see you too..." Kaze said sarcastically.

"You're looking a little wild there Sai." Umi joked. Sai looked at her claws and realized that she was still in her demon state. She quickly released to energy and returned to normal.

"Sorry about that." Sai said sheepishly, scratching the back of her head.

"Don't worry about it." Kaze told her. He sniffed the air and looked over her shoulder with a concerned look, "Was he here?" Sai's face quickly became serious.

"Yeah. He was here." Sai said, anger seeping into her voice.

"He get away?" Akage asked. Sai nodded

"The bastard's got some sort of magic. It let him teleport out of here. Wouldn't have mattered anyway. It's not like I could have killed him." Sai spat.

"Why not Sai?" Nami asked, confused, "His blood is everywhere. I assume you were winning." Sai nodded again.

"I was." Sai told her, "I was destroying him. He never got a hit on me. Problem is that his life is sustained by the exact thing that we need to beat him and restore this land."

"The embodiment of love?" Umi asked.

"Yeah. The bastard is guarding it on the far eastern coast. He said that we may know where to find it, but that we'll never get it." Sai said.

"Well, we'll just have to prove him wrong then, now won't we?" Kaze said smirking, "And if I know my wife, she'll take this as a personal challenge and end up winning it in some brilliant fashion." This made everyone laugh, even Sai.

"And if I know my husband, he'll be right beside me to help." She said.

"Damn right." Kaze assured her. Sai nodded, took a deep breath, and changed the subject.

"So, what's happened with all of the soldiers?" She asked.

"Most are passed out. None of them have any demonic influence over them. They'll be fine and return home when they wake up." Akage explained.

"Though we might not want to be here when they do wake up." Nami pointed out, "They may not be under demonic influence anymore, but that influence had to take advantage of something to enslave them like this. All of these men were demon haters even before Konton came to them."

"True enough." Kaze agreed, "Let's get out of here." Sai, Akage, and Kaze proceeded to sprint away from the tent camp, while Nami and Umi climbed on Kirara to follow.

They met up again on the road a good mile away from the tent camp. It would be another hour or so before most of them woke up, but nobody wanted to take any chances. Now none of them seemed to know what to do. No one had any idea how to proceed. After a few moments, Kaze spoke up.

"So..." He began, "What now?" No one answered. Kaze sighed. "C'mon guys. We need to have some sort of plan."

"Can you or Sai smell a village from here?" Nami asked. Both of them sniffed the air, searching for the scent of civilization. Sai got it first.

"Yeah. If we keep traveling east, we'll run into one later today. My guess is that it's where those soldiers were headed. It smells like it's a large place." Sai told them. Kaze nodded his agreement.

"Alright then." Umi said, "I guess that's where we should go then." Everyone agreed and the half-demons took off down the road. Nami leaned forward and scratched Kirara's ears. She purred lightly at the attention.

"You ready to go Kirara?" Nami asked the cat demon who nodded in the affirmative and took off after the other three.

Sai had been right. They reached the village just as the sun began to set. It was beautiful and the group enjoyed it as they prepared to enter the village. Sai and Kaze both used their spiritual energy to suppress their demonic features while Nami did the same for Akage. Umi even managed to make Kirara look like a normal house cat.

"Damn that feels weird." Akage said as his hair turned black and his other features became distinctly human, "It definitely doesn't feel like that when it happens on the night of the new year." Sai and Kaze nodded their agreement. Then Sai realized what he had said.

"Wait, you're night is the night of the new year? How come you only have to go through it once a year, while Kaze and I have to do it every month?" She demanded. Akage shrugged.

"Don't know." He admitted, "It's the same for all phoenix half-demons. I think it's supposed to be symbolic or something."

"I guess I can understand that." Kaze said, "Rising from the ashes of the old year or something right?"

"Something like that." Akage agreed, "What's your night Kaze, now that you're a half-demon like us?"

"Kiretsu told me that it would be the night of the full moon. It's supposed to mirror Sai's so that I can be at my peak when she is at her weakest." Kaze explained, "Though, even as a human, I don't think anyone can call her weak." Sai smiled at this.

"Damn right. I'm still one of the most powerful priestesses ever while I'm human." She said proudly. This made everyone laugh, including Sai.

"So is everybody ready?" Umi asked after the laughter had calmed down. Everyone nodded their agreement and headed into the village.

Luckily for them, both Kaze and Sai maintained some of their sense of smell. The village had turned out to be a large town, but the two managed to lead them to one of the inns in the town before night fell. It wasn't anything large or fancy, but it would do. They entered and looked around. The main room was mostly empty. A few people were around and talking quietly. Eventually they found the innkeeper. He was an old man that looked extremely bored sitting against the wall talking to his wife. When he saw his new customers, he immediately took the opportunity to stop his conversation and talk to them.

"Welcome friends. Welcome to my humble inn. I am Kokoro. I assume that you are all here for a room for the night?" The man said.

"Yes, yes we are. I am Kaze and we could most certainly use a place to sleep." Kaze told the man. A look of recognition and surprise crossed the man's face. He smiled warmly.

"Ahh, I thought you would never get here my friends." He said warmly. Kaze looked to his friends in confusion, but they had the same confused looks on their faces, so he turned back to the innkeeper.

"You know us?" Kaze asked.

"One could say that." The man said, "I was told of your coming in a dream three nights ago. You looked somewhat different in the dream, but I did get the impression that you might look a bit different."

"You were told about us in a dream?" Sai said, clearly confused, "By who?"

"A man by the name of Mageru." The innkeeper said, "He told me that you were working against the empire, so that was enough for me to help you. You will stay here at my inn free for the night." This shocked everyone.

"Oh... Um..." Kaze stammered, not knowing what to say, "Thank you for your generosity."

"It is no problem friends. I shall have my wife take you to your rooms. There are three reserved for you. I'm assuming that you'll know who goes with who. Dinner will be brought to you soon." He said before walking over to get his wife, who had already found another person to enter into conversation with. Kaze looked back to his friends.

"Is this going to happen every time?" He whispered.

"I damn sure hope so." Akage whispered back, "It's not like we have a whole lot of money." Kaze nodded and turned back to the woman that was approaching them.

"Follow me please." The innkeeper's wife said as she continued walking off towards a hall of rooms. They were led to the final three doors and told to divide them amongst themselves. The woman clearly wanted to get back to whoever she was talking to before and hurried back down the hall. It didn't take them long to figure out who would room with who. Sai and Kaze took one. Nami and Akage took another, while Umi and Kirara took the last one.

Sai immediately took the opportunity to stretch out on the bedding and relax. It made Kaze laugh.

"Tired eh?" He commented.

"Just a little." Sai admitted, "Can't wait for dinner though."

"Yeah I'm starving." Kaze agreed as he sat down next to her and leaned his back against the wall. Suddenly a thought hit him that made him chuckle.

"Hey Sai?" He said.

"What is it?" She asked him, "What's so funny?"

"I was just thinking about our parents." Kaze told her, "Our relationship is a whole lot less complex." The thought made Sai laugh too.

"Yeah I guess so." Sai admitted, sitting up and snuggling up next to her husband. "But I kinda like it that way. I don't have to worry about you running off after some dead ex-girlfriend that you can't get over."

"I don't know Sai..." Kaze said mischievously, "Maybe you don't know me as well as you think." Sai rolled her eyes.

"Please, Kaze. Don't even try." She said laughing, "I've known you since I was born and been crazy about you for almost as long. I knew about any and every girl you ever even got close to." Kaze's eyes widened in surprise.

"Oh really?" He asked incredulously, "So you stalked me?"

"Yup." Sai said simply, "Got really good at it too. You're sisters helped a lot you know. I always got crazy jealous when there was another girl's scent on you. Probably still would actually." This made Kaze laugh. Sai joined him after a moment.

"What? Don't you trust me?" Kaze joked.

"Of course." Sai assured him, "I wouldn't have married you otherwise. That doesn't mean I can control what my demon blood feels. It's always going to assume that any unfamiliar female scent is someone trying to take you away from me. The same thing would happen to you if you smelled another guy's scent on me."

"I guess you're right." Kaze admitted, an idea forming in his mind, "If that happened, I guess I'd have to reestablish my scent on you. You know, mark my territory."

"Ooh. And how would you go about that husband?" Sai asked, giving him a sultry look.

"Well I guess I'll just have to show you." Kaze told her as he pulled her into his lap. Their lips met. Kaze deepened the kiss and tightened his embrace while Sai allowed his hands to explore. However, just as Kaze found the tie to Sai's kimono, they heard a knock at the door. They grudgingly broke away from each other.

"Damn." Kaze cursed softly, "Dinner just had to come now." Sai laughed.

"Don't worry about it." She told him, "We'll get back to this later. That's a promise." She winked and got up to answer the door.

"Yeah, but your scent is going to drive me insane before dinner is over." Kaze said softly. Sai still heard him and chuckled lightly before answering the door. It was the innkeeper's wife. She delivered the food before quickly leaving to deliver meals to the other two rooms.

Sai returned with the food and handed Kaze his portion. She quickly shed her human appearance. Kaze did the same.

"Glad we don't need to keep that up anymore." Sai said, relieved to finally feel herself again.

"Yeah." Kaze mumbled, "It's just gonna make your scent stronger and keep something else up." Sai burst into laughter at this. It took her awhile to calm down again.

"I told you. After dinner." She assured him, using her eyes to show her desire, "I promise, you're going to need the energy."

"I think I like the sound of that." Kaze said before digging into his food.

"Figured you would." Sai told him as she too began to eat.


	37. Chapter 37

**Warning: M rated chapter. Kids, read not this chapter... Unless you want to... I can't stop you...**

Chapter 37

Sai could tell that Kaze was doing his best to maintain his self-control during the meal. She found it funny, but could understand why he was like he was. Whenever she got aroused, her body would respond in kind and start producing an insane amount of hormones and pheromones to attract her mate. It worked with drastic results. Frankly, the fact that Kaze wasn't all over her at that very moment was a testament to his self-control. That fact didn't stop her from having a little fun with Kaze's struggle. Males didn't give off the same scent, so she was free from the frenzied thoughts that plagued Kaze. She took advantage of this by eating in the most suggestive way possible. She moaned loudly and arches her back as she ate. She even began to lightly lick and suck on her food before she actually ate it. It was all Kaze could so to stay on his side of the table, let alone talk. Instead he simply sat and tried his very best to focus on his food and not his teasing wife. As she got close to finishing her food, Sai decided to push one last time. She purposefully dropped a piece of food down the front of her kimono.  
"Damn, would you look at that Kaze." Sai complained, "I dropped some food. Can you help me with this?" She tugged on the front of her clothes and pouted cutely. Kaze reacted just how she would have expected. He groaned involuntarily and punched himself hard in the leg.  
"Are you trying to kill me woman?" He whined. Sai smiled invitingly.  
"Whatever do you mean husband?" She asked, feigning innocence, "I just need you help over here. Please, come rescue your helpless wife."  
"You're having fun with this aren't you?" Kaze accused as he stood up, obviously having a great deal of trouble controlling himself. Sai could even see his eyes flash red for a second as his inner demon begged to be let out and have his way with her.  
"Of course not." Sai said, flashing him another wanton smile. Kaze rolled his eyes and approached his wife. Sai loosened the front of her kimono as Kaze knelt beside her. Kaze, much to Sai's surprise, managed to remove the piece of food from in between her breasts without losing himself. His hands shook the entire time, but he got the piece and laid with the remnants of Sai's meal. In order to get the reaction she wanted, Sai was going to have to take drastic measures. As soon as Kaze stood up, Sai rested her head against his inner thigh. He flinched from the touch. Sai took this further and began to rub it up and down, making sure to press against his manhood as she did it. Kaze began to emit an involuntary low growl. It aroused every sense that Sai had and made her nearly lose control herself.  
"Thank you husband. I don't know what I would ever do without you." She said, keeping her voice smooth and inviting.  
"Well you aren't going to find out tonight." He said in a rough, low voice. Kaze moved with lightning speed. In a fraction of a second, he had picked Sai up and gotten her to the bedding on the other side of the room. He took Sai into his embrace and pressed his lips against hers. Sai reciprocated the kiss and deepened it. Kaze's hands quickly found the tie to her kimono and got it undone without any trouble. The clothing fell open to reveal the undergarments that she was wearing. Kaze groaned at the extra layer of clothing between him and his woman making Sai giggle. It didn't take long before this too joined her kimono in a pile of clothing. Sai added Kaze's clothes to it a few moments later.

Kaze's kisses left Sai's lips and began to run down her neck. They stopped at her breasts. To her left, he kissed and licked his way to the top stopping at the nipple. His fangs lightly brushed the hardened flesh sending a flash of pleasure through her body causing to moan softly. He gave her right the same attention. After this detour, he continued his way down her body. It didn't take him long to find the area between her legs. His lips and tongue came into contact with the sensitive flesh. Shock waves of pleasure rocked through Sai's body as Kaze used his mouth to bring her closer and closer to her peak. Her moans constantly became louder until, at the point of climax, they were screams of pure ecstasy. She came and Kaze hungrily lapped up the results. He then kissed his way back up to her mouth. Sai could taste her own essence on his lips, but at this point she was so far gone that she didn't care.  
"Where'd you learn that?" Sai asked breathlessly.  
"Instinct. You like?" Kaze asked.  
"Oh yeah." She said in a satisfied voice, arching her body into Kaze's.  
"Well then, you're gonna love this." He spread her legs and slid home. Sai immediately agreed showing her appreciation with a loud and by grinding her hips into Kaze's. He moved back and forth, alternating a between a slow and fast pace. Sai moved along with him and screamed out her satisfaction. Kaze's hands lightly fondled her breasts while he worked. His delicate touch was like tiny shocks of pleasant electricity on her skin. Sai wrapped her legs tightly around Kaze's waist as the pleasure rushed through her body. As she screamed out the peak of her orgasm, Kaze released himself into her and brought her sweaty body against his. His lips lightly brushed against hers before coming back for something deeper.  
"Damn." Sai said when they broke for air, "I should tease you more often." Kaze laughed.  
"Trust me, if you want this again, just ask." He told her, "I was not a fan of trying to restrain myself. You, woman, are a professional temptress." Sai put on another wanton smile.  
"Only for you, husband." She said before lacing her fingers through his hair and bringing him in for another kiss.

Sai fell asleep in Kaze's arms. She felt completely at ease and completely satisfied. It wasn't hard to tell that Kaze felt the same. Her dreams that night were pleasant. Mainly because they replayed the events of the night over and over in her mind. The pleasant thoughts gave her one of the best nights of sleep that she had ever had.

Morning, however, came much too quickly. Sai was awoken by the sounds of activity outside of the door to their room. They were the normal sounds to be expected early in the morning for an inn. The sound of attendants rushing around and people preparing breakfast for the guests. Sai could tell by the smell of the inn that breakfast would be ready soon so she decided to wake Kaze. She shifted in his embrace and nuzzled her face against his neck and then lightly nipped his ear. He opened his eyes slowly and blinked out some of the tiredness in them.  
"Morning beautiful." He said, smiling. Sai giggled.  
"Morning. C'mon." She said, throwing off the blanket that covered them and standing up, "Breakfast is gonna be here soon and I kinda wanna be dressed when it gets here."  
"Come now Sai. Don't be ashamed. You have an amazing body." Kaze joked. Sai laughed at this and put her hands on her bare hips giving him an exasperated look.  
"What am I going to do with you?" She asked sarcastically. Kaze simply shrugged his shoulders so Sai kicked his clothes him. They landed over his face.  
"Was that really necessary?" Kaze asked, removing them from his head.  
"Oh absolutely." Sai joked, giggling.

Not long after the couple finished dressing and disguising their demonic forms, they heard a knock on the door. Sai answered it and accepted the breakfast that was offered to her by innkeeper's wife. She brought it back to her husband and gave it him his portion.  
"I'm guessing that this meal won't be as fun as dinner was last night." Kaze said.  
"Probably not." Sai affirmed, giggling. Kaze sighed and then dug into his food.

After finishing breakfast, they cleaned up their room and went out to the main room of the inn. Umi and Kirara were waiting for them. Nami and Akage joined soon after. They thanked the innkeeper for his generosity and left the inn and the town as a whole. Once they had gotten far enough outside the town, they shed their human facade and began their fast paced method of travel yet again.  
"So," Umi began after some time, "What's the plan for today?"  
"My guess is that we keep heading east." Akage said.  
"Yeah, I'd say that's as good a plan as any." Kaze agreed.  
"Don't think we're going to be staying in beds tonight, though." Sai pointed out, "The next piece of civilization smells like it's at least a couple days travel from here, even at the speed that we're going."  
"Damn." Nami cursed in defeated voice, "I was hoping for another night in a bed."  
"Alas, it seems the we will be roughing it again." Umi lamented.  
"How long til we reach the eastern coast?" Akage asked. Kaze thought for a moment before answering.  
"I would say at least five or six days." He told him.  
"You think Konton is going to try and stop us or slow us down?" Sai asked.  
"Probably. The way you told it, he seems pretty confident that we won't get what we're looking for. But I'm guessing that his confidence is probably pretty shook up over the beating you gave him. It's all together possible that he could try to weaken us before we reach the coast." Kaze explained.  
"You think that he's going to use another demon army?" Nami asked.  
"Maybe. It slowed us down a good bit last time. Nearly killed Sai." Kaze told her.  
"But that was before our time in the future." Akage pointed out, "We're all a great deal stronger now."  
"Yeah I'm pretty sure Nami and I could take out most of one army pretty easily now. At least if they're all demons." Umi said.  
"True." Sai agreed, "But I think it's more likely that he'll use one very powerful demon. That will pose much more of a problem."  
"You think he's left any alive?" Kaze asked.  
"Probably, but only ones that he has a firm mental control over. Konton doesn't seem like one to take the chance of keeping around a volatile demon that could over power him." Sai explained.  
"I got that feeling too." Nami agreed, "So do you or Kaze smell anything interesting?" They both sniffed the air and shook their heads.  
"Nope." Kaze said, "Air is cl-" As the air was trying to prove him wrong, the air filled with an unnervingly familiar scent. Sai noticed it too.  
"You smell that?" She asked. Kaze nodded and turned to Nami.  
"Is fresh blood interesting enough?" Kaze asked.


	38. Chapter 38

**Shameless plug time! I've got a new story that I started working on a few days ago in case any of you haven't seen it. It's called Crossed Swords and Crossed Lovers. Summary sucks, but I promise the story is good. Still in the early stages (only got 3 chapters so far, but I'm well into working on the 4th), but I tried my best to make it start out in a more interesting way than this one did. It offers a modern day take on the Inuyasha story. Plus there's a bunch of other crazy stuff going on in it. Please check it out!**

**OK! Shameless plug over! On to the story!**

Chapter 38

"Dammit!" Kaze cursed as they moved at a frightening speed toward the growing scent of blood, "This just had to be today! Of all days, it had to be the night of the full moon!"

"Kaze, it's going to be alright." Akage assured him, "My guess is that we'll be done before night comes. This probably has nothing to do with Konton anyway since you don't smell demons or a human army."

"Konton has hidden his scent and the scent of other demons before." Kaze growled out.

"He's right. Remember the cave where we first met him, when he hid all of those demons?" Umi reminded him.

"How could I forget? We all nearly got killed." Akage said, the memory coming back to him.

"If it weren't for you, Akage, we probably all would have died." Nami pointed out.

"All I'm trying to say guys is that we shouldn't worry. If Kaze turns human before this is over, so be it. He's been human for most of our journey any way and he's been fine." Akage pointed out.

"True." Sai agreed, "Plus the full moon is when I'm at my peak."

"I still don't like it." Kaze grumbled. This made Sai laugh.

"I can see that." She joked. Kaze growled making everyone laugh.

"Alright you two, cut it out." Umi said, "How far away is the scent?" Sai sniffed the air again.

"We'll be there in about a half hour. Scent is getting bigger too. Whatever is going on, there's a lot of blood being spilled." She said seriously.

"Well, at least there are no demons." Nami muttered to herself.

As if on cue, at that very moment Sai caught the scent of two different types of demons. She recognized both of them and groaned loudly at the prospect of what was to come.

"Nami, you can go ahead and take back what you just said." Sai said.

"Are those the scents I think they are?" Kaze asked.

"Yup. Panther and wolf demons. By the smell of it, the Panthers are the Devas and the wolves are Koga and Ayame." She told them.

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Umi yelled, exasperated, " They pick now to go to war?" Sai shook her head.

"They're traveling together. I think that they're working as allies. Plus, there are only those six. No armies, so no war." She explained

"No way." Akage said flatly, "I may not know the leaders you guys are talking about, but the panthers and the wolves have always hated each other. The only worse relationship is between the panthers and the dogs. No offense guys."

"Desperate times call for desperate measures Akage." Kaze said, "We know both of the leaders. They both hate each other, but have resolved their differences before. Now that their tribes are in danger, and since there is nothing that either of them love more than their tribe, it doesn't surprise me that they'd work together. They probably hate it, but they're willing to do it."

"I see." Akage said, processing the information, "You think this has anything to do with what we're after?"

"Don't know." Sai told him, "But my guess is that we're going to find out soon. Koga's got my scent and he and Ayame are speeding this way right now. They're also probably pretty curious about you Kaze."

"Just like everybody else." He complained.

It was only a few minutes before Koga and Ayame's whirlwinds appeared in front of them. They had obviously left the Devas in the dust in order to meet up with them. Sai yelled for them to run alongside them, so they did.

"Hey there guys." Sai greeted them cheerily.

"Hey Sai. You're looking beautiful as ever." Koga said before Ayame punched him in the back of the head, "Ayame! I was just trying to be nice!"

"Well then do it in a different way!" Ayame yelled back. This made Sai chuckle. Koga had always had a thing for her mom, but she was taken. Now, since Sai looked so much like her mother, Koga would always comment about her looks. She would have to tell him that she was taken now too.

"Sorry about that." Ayame apologized, "How are you guys? We weren't expecting to see you out here."

"We're as good as we can be, I guess. We weren't expecting to see you either." Sai admitted, "Actually, right now, we're chasing that scent of blood up ahead."

"So are we." Koga said, still rubbing his head, "We caught it and figured we'd check it out." Ayame nodded her head agreement.

"That brings up another question. Are you guys working with the panthers now or what?" Sai asked. Koga simply growled, but Ayame answered.

"Yeah we are." She said, "We don't like them and they don't like us, but we're doing it out of necessity. Konton's armies have really been pushing us hard recently. We don't know if our borders can hold on our own strength and the panthers had the same concern, so we've needed to work together to avoid destruction." Sai nodded her head in understanding.

"I see." She said simply before changing the subject, "So how have you and Koga been?"

"Good actually. When he's not being an idiot, that is." Ayame joked. Koga smiled sheepishly. "We've actually got two pups at home right now. They're being guarded by the rest of the tribe."

"That's wonderful!" Sai said excitedly. Ayame blushed a bit.

"How about you Sai? I can smell a mating mark on you. It's fairly new, I can tell." She said, changing the subject. Sai beamed at the female wolf demon.

"Me and Kaze! We got married! Not too long ago actually." Sai told her.

"Sai that's amazing! I never expected to hear that! Where is Kaze anyway? And how did a human give you a mark?" Ayame asked. Sai motioned to the half-demon running beside her. Both Ayame and Koga's jaws dropped.

"Well he looks... different..." Koga commented. Kaze smirked at him.

"Just a little bit." He said sarcastically, "Nothing too crazy. Just got a little demon blood flowing through my veins now."

"I guess that explains the mating mark." Ayame said, "Well congratulations you two! I'll need to hear the story about all this later, especially the part about Kaze becoming a half-demon. For now, though, we have other things to worry about." Everyone nodded at that and began to focus on the matter at hand.

"So you guys have any idea what this is?" Nami asked. Both Ayame and Koga shook their heads at this.

"No." Koga said, "Smells like human blood, though, and a lot of it. Whenever that happens, it's never good."

"Yeah, no kidding." Akage agreed. This made Koga look over and notice the other half-demon.

"Who's the phoenix?" Koga asked.

"An ally we picked up." Kaze answered, "Great fighter and a good friend."

"Not to mention Nami's boyfriend!" Umi piped up causing the two in question to turn bright red. Koga ignored this and simply kept running. Sai knew that Koga didn't care whether Akage was half-demon or not. If he could hold his own in a fight, then he had Koga's respect. It was one of his good qualities.

"We're not far from the scent." Sai said, changing the subject. She was right. In less than a minute, they were at the base of a small hill. The source of the scent of blood was definitely on the other side.

Once they reached the top of it, it was immediately clear where the smell of blood was coming from. Human bodies, or rather, pieces of human bodies were strewn everywhere. The grass that covered the land that extended from the base of the hill was soaked in blood. Sai began to growl menacingly.

"What is it Sai?" Kaze asked, concerned for his wife.

"There's a reason we can't smell demon in the area." She said, anger straining her voice, "It's because there weren't any demons involved. This is the work of magic. By the scent of it, a sorceress."

"Magic?" Koga asked, incredulously. Magic was obviously not something he was used to. Sai nodded.

"Yeah. It's extremely rare for humans. The most common manifestation of it is in priestesses and you know how rare we are. There are other examples of human magic users, but they are even rarer. However, even priestesses are limited in their magic usage. Our magic must be pure or neutral. It cannot be tainted. That kind of magic is extremely rare, especially for humans, and will only manifest itself in two people per generation. One male and one female. They normally die off fairly quickly too because they can't handle their powers, but it seems the female has survived to adolescence." Sai explained.

"Is she working with Konton?" Kaze asked, "I know you said that there was some kind of magic he used to escape." Sai shook her head.

"No that was neutral magic and it didn't give off the same energy. It's very possible that Konton has magic abilities of his own. It's not unheard of for demons. Kagura controlled the wind through demon magic. My guess is that this human sorceress is working alone." Sai told them.

"Then why kill all these people?" Ayame asked.

"No idea." Sai admitted, "From what I know, these kinds of sorceresses that actually survive childhood can easily become demented or insane. She might be doing this for her own sick pleasure."

"We have to take her out then." Nami said, "We can't let this go on."

"Hold up." Kaze commanded, "Shouldn't we be focusing on our main objective? If we stop to fight this sorceress, that just gives Konton time to get stronger and earns us a new enemy."

"Are we supposed to just let this woman go around slaughtering innocent people like this then?" Umi demanded.

"I never said that." Kaze said, holding up his hand, "We could leave it for the wolves and panthers to sort out. This is their territory after all."

"I'm okay with that." Koga told them, "You guys continue on with your mission. We'll take care of this damn sorceress." Koga was supremely confident, but Sai began to shake her head.

"No." She said, flatly, "You'll just get slaughtered like these humans. This sorceress is powerful. Throwing an army of humans or demons at her would just give her a warm up." Koga began to growl at this, but Ayame put her hand on his shoulder to calm him down.

"So what should we do?" Ayame asked.

"We'll take care of the sorceress. You two gather up the Devas and go back to your tribes. Even though she may not be working with Konton, I wouldn't put it past him to use the chaos she's making to his advantage and try to wipe your tribes off the map. You need to be there to lead them." Sai told them. Koga and Ayame nodded and said their goodbyes before running off to do as Sai said. The rest of the group turned to face Sai.

"So what now?" Akage asked, "Where is this sorceress? Only you can feel her energy since you're the priestess here." Sai nodded and turned to face the carnage below. She closed her eyes and tried her best to sort through all of the energies that were flowing through the air. The residual magic was making it hard. She slowly stripped away her other senses so that they wouldn't distract her. Then suddenly, the energy spiked. The type of spike that could only come from an attack.

"Get down!" Sai screamed. She called it out just in time and everyone managed to hit the ground before the red wave of magic sliced through the air that they had just occupied. They all looked up from the dirt to search the direction which the attack had come from. It didn't take long. There, standing on a pile of limbs and other pieces of bodies, stood a girl. She looked to be barely fifteen. That was the same age as Sai, but this girl looked much more immature. However, the sadistic smirk on her face, the blood soaking her clothes and skin, and the evil red magic emanating from her hands served to say that she had seen and done more than any person ever should. The girl called out to them.

"Welcome to the party! Now come! Join my other guests." That's when the ground started to shake.

**Review please! It would make me very happy. Plus it will make the story better, I promise!**


	39. Chapter 39

Chapter 39

The earth was shaking violently. Cracks in the ground started to form in the ground. A high pitched sound that sounded almost like a scream pierced the sky. It was such an offensive sound that Sai and Kaze both had to flatten their ears to block it out. Kirara was also obviously in pain, but the only other person that even seemed to notice was Akage. Nami and Umi were completely unaffected by the noise. The sorceress in the middle of the field below them began to laugh hysterically. Red energy began to surround and give her a very threatening and ominous appearance. As if her evil aura wasn't bad enough.

"What the hell is going on?" Kaze spat.

"She's building up a ton of magic!" Sai warned her friends, "Not sure what kind of attack she's building up for, but whatever it is, it's gonna be big!"

"Well then, we're just gonna have to stop her before she fires it off." Akage called back. Sai nodded her agreement. She was racking her brain for something to do when it suddenly came to her. Tainted magic could be purified just like anything else. Sai would just have to purify the girl's aura and her magic would temporarily be useless. The only problem was that she couldn't get close to the girl without her releasing the energy that she'd already built up. Then an idea entered her mind.

Sai immediately summoned Shinseina Yumi and several arrows to her hands. She may not have been able to get close to the sorceress to purify her aura, but she sure as hell could fire a few sacred arrows at it. The others noticed what she was doing and immediately gave her space, especially the ones with demon blood. They knew exactly how much spiritual energy Sai could put into each shot and they didn't want to get caught in any of it. The girl in the field, however, seemed to be too preoccupied with laughing maniacally to know that her precious little spell was in danger. Sai knocked an arrow and took aim. She pointed the arrow straight at the vortex of her magical energy, which happened to be her heart, and charged it. Once the air around the arrow started to spark from the energy that it was in direct contact with, Sai knew the arrow was ready. She released it with the signature twang of a bow string snapping back to place.

"Hit the mark." She muttered to herself, adopting her mother's phrase when firing off an arrow. The saying held true. The arrow slammed into the girl's aura, however it did not pierce it. Instead, the powerful blue aura of the arrow was held off by the massive red aura that was being produced by the girl. After a few moments of struggle, during which the girl never stopped laughing, the arrow began burn and was soon turned to ashes and blown away by the wind. That was a massive surprise to Sai. No one had ever resisted her sacred arrow.

"What the hell?" Sai demanded from the air. The sorceress seemed to hear her and responded by intensifying her laughter. This made Sai scowl and start to growl menacingly. She knocked another arrow and charged it to twice the power of the last. The arrow left the bow with a spark of energy and slammed into the girl's aura. A massive explosion that kicked a cloud of dust was the result. Sai smirked, confident in her victory.

"Ha! Bitch never had a chance." She spat. However, her words were soon proved wrong when the dust cleared. The girl still stood, unscathed, aura still growing. The only thing different was that her annoying laughter had been replaced by a scowl.

"You did NOT just call me a bitch!" The young sorceress screamed. Sai bared her fangs.

"Damn right I did bitch!" Sai retorted.

"Shut up half-breed!" The girl screamed back.

"Bitch now you are really gonna die!" Sai threatened. Her friends looked from Sai to the sorceress and back. Kaze scratched his head.

"Looks like the two most powerful girls in the world are having a catfight..." He commented.

"This is ridiculous." Umi agreed.

"Gotta admit." Akage began, "It's kinda hot..." Nami's face twisted into one of jealousy and rage.

"WHAT?!" She screamed. Akage's fear was clear as he put his hands up.

"Not as much as you babe! I swear! But you gotta admit that this is a little bit of a turn on." He insisted. Nami narrowed her eyes at him.

"Fine. I'll give you that. But we will talk about this later..." She said threateningly. Then she turned to Sai, "Sai! Kill this bitch quick and let's get outta here." Sai smirked.

"Gladly." She said dismissing her priestess bow and drawing her demon blades and focusing her attention back on the seething sorceress, "Time to die!"

Sai sprinted forward faster than anyone could register. The girl let loose an attack at the area that Sai had been standing, but the red magic slammed into empty ground. Sai reappeared a few feet to the left of the girl with her swords raised in an X.

"DRAGON RIFT!" She roared as the beams of light rushed from the swords and slammed into the sorceress. Sai didn't have time to celebrate. She knew by the scent in the air that the girl had dodged the attack, so she began to search the area with her eyes to find her.

"Up here half-breed!" Her venomous voice shouted from above. By virtue of her magic, she was floating in the sky above where Sai was standing. She chuckled, "My turn." With that she flicked her wrist and sent down a shower of spears made of her red magic. They pierced the ground and exploded on impact. Sai had an incredibly difficult time dodging all of them and was ultimately unsuccessful. She landed just as one struck beside her. Without any time for her to jump away, the bolt of energy exploded and sent Sai flying across the field. She slammed into the ground hard, leaving a small crater where she hit.

"Dammit." She cursed as she spat out the blood that had risen to her mouth. The sorceress was laughing hysterically again as she lowered herself to the ground and began walking casually towards where Sai was struggling to get up.

"You've been outclassed, bitch." She said, dragging out the last word. Sai jammed one of her swords into the ground and used it to pry herself up from the ground. Once up, she spat blood once again and stared the girl straight in the eyes. Then she laughed wickedly.

"I'm in a class of my own." She growled. The change was almost instantaneous. Sai's fangs and claws grew, while purple demon markings streaked her cheeks and her eyes turned blood red with her gold irises in the middle. The sorceress was not impressed.

"Oh, so the girl has let the dog out of its cage. I guess you really are a bitch now." She said dryly, "But my dear Saiai, do you really think that you can stop me with that? The great Akai Majutsu-shi, Haruka?" Sai began to chuckled wickedly.

"Oh hell yeah." She said, her eyes becoming completely red. A look of fear crossed Haruka's face. Sai noticed and smirked over her growl, "Scared now, huh?" Haruka scowled and entered into a fighting stance, summoning two blades of her red magic to her hands.

"Not a chance." She shot back.

"We'll see..." With that, Sai shot forward, her swords leading the way. Haruka barely had time to block the attack. Sai's swords rung off of hers. However, Haruka did not have time to recover. Sai was relentless in her attack. Each movement of Sai's blades was expertly timed and masterfully carried out. The sorceress simply couldn't keep up and she knew it. Knowing that she wouldn't last much longer in a direct sword confrontation, Haruka stomped her foot into the ground causing it explode with the blast directed at Sai. Sai immediately disengaged and jumped high into the air and backflipped gracefully away from the ruined ground.

Haruka was panting heavily from the short engagement. She was obviously not used to having to exert physical force in a fight. Sai, however, was perfected fine and hadn't even broken a sweat. It wasn't hard for Sai to figure out that Haruka wouldn't keep fighting like this for long. She would soon abandon close quarters combat and retreat to use her magic to finish Sai off. The only thing that was keeping her there now was pride and Sai could tell that this girl valued her own life over her pride. Sai knew that she would have to finish the girl off before she retreated.

In the midst of these thoughts, Haruka lept forward to attack Sai. Sai quickly snapped back to reality and easily parried the attack. She then took advantage of the opening she had created and pressed the attack. Sai knocked one of the red blades from Haruka's hands and thrust the other deep into the girl's stomach. The sorceress grunted in pain, but quickly responded by kicking Sai away from her causing the sword to slide out. Blood spurted from the wound and stained the ground a dark red. Haruka clutched the wound and her hand glowed red. When she removed her hand, the would-be fatal wound was healed, but Haruka was a great deal paler than before. Sai smirked. The girl wasn't invincible. She was running out of power and healing that wound had put a huge drain on her magic reserves.

"So," Sai growled, "before I kill you, you want to tell me why you killed all of those people?" Haruka laughed weakly.

"For the hell of it." She answered casually. Normally, this answer would have made Sai's stomach churn, but in her current full demon state, it didn't bother her in the slightest. It actually sounded somewhat appealing, except for the small voice in her head that told her it was wrong. She quickly shut the voice down and returned to her conversation with the sorceress.

"Sounds like fun." Sai said, bloodlust obvious.

"Figured you would say that, mutt. We're not so different, you and I." She commented.

"Oh yeah? How so?" Sai asked, curious as to the witch's point.

"Our instincts both tell us to kill anything and everything. They tell us to rip the throats out of every living thing around us and drink its blood just because we can. Because we're better than them." Haruka explained.

"True enough." Sai laughed.

"I mean, just look at your so-called "friends" over there." She said, pointing at the five figures on the nearby hill, "Don't they just look appetizing? Can't you smell their fear? I can feel it radiating off of them. It's like a wave of pleasure to me. Turns me on, to be honest." Sai smirked as Haruka licked her lips at the depraved thoughts running through mind.

"Well, maybe I'll just have to have a snack." Sai growled, "After I tear out your heart." Haruka scowled.

"Just try it bi-" But before she could finish her sentence, Sai had abandoned her swords and had stabbed her claws into Haruka's chest. The sorceress' eyes were wide with shock as blood trickled from her mouth.

"I wasn't kidding." Sai whispered menacingly. Then she clenched her clawed hands, causing Haruka to wince, and ripped her still beating heart from her chest. Haruka's body dropped first to it's knees, then completely to the ground. Sai dropped the heart on top of it.

"Bitch." Sai spat as she walked over to retrieve her swords from their place stuck in the ground. Then she turned to stare at the people on the hill and sniffed the air. She laughed as the one scent that she still remembered and loved filled her lungs alongside four other appetizing scents nearby, "Let's go see if my mate wants lunch."

Kaze looked on as the woman that was his wife and mate walked towards him and his friends. He should have been happy since she had just won a major battle. The problem was that she wasn't herself. Her scent had changed along with her appearance. She was in her full demon state. Her demon blood had overpowered her during the fight and now she was subject to its will. Kaze knew that she wouldn't hurt him since he was her mate. However, he also knew that his friends didn't have the same luxury and that they were now in danger. The only thing he didn't know was what he could do about it.

"Guys, you're gonna need to run now." Kaze said bluntly.

"What?" Nami asked confused, "Sai just won. Why should we run?"

"Because Sai isn't herself right now." Akage answered, "Her demon blood took over her mind. Now the only person she know up here would probably be Kaze. We just look like a nice meal for them to share."

"Well we can't just leave her then!" Umi insisted, "She needs our help!"

"Yeah and I'll give it to her! But you have to get out of here now. Keeping from eating you would be impossible!" Kaze yelled. Hesitantly, the two girls agreed before escaping with Kirara and Akage. Kaze turned around to face his mate. She was much closer now at the base of the hill. He knew that she wouldn't be happy that he let their food run away.

Sai walked towards her mate in her demon blood induced haze. This haze was only intensified by what she saw when she got to the bottom of the hill. Her mate was shooing their food away. He was telling them to run away when she had just finished a battle. There was even a cat demon among those that he had chased away, one that would have been very tasty. She sprinted at superhuman speed the rest of the way up the hill and stared daggers at her mate.

"What the hell was that?" Sai growled, "Now we have to go catch the food again!" Her mate stared back at her dumbly. His eyes were almost sad.

As soon as this thought ran through her mind, her mate mark began to burn. All her mate's emotions began to flood into her. Among them were sadness, worry, and fear... for her. Sai couldn't rationalize all of these in her clouded mind. They hurt her and confused her. She looked to her mate desperately trying to figure out what was making him feel this way. Then he began to approach her with tear beginning to stain his face. He stopped in front of Sai and lifted his hand to her face to brush away the loose hair from her face.

"Sai..." He whispered softly. Then, without warning, he took her into his tight embrace. Sai couldn't process what was happening. It didn't make sense and she couldn't shake the burning of her mate mark on her right shoulder.

"Sai... Sai please come back to me..." He whispered into her ear as his tears wet her neck and shoulder.

"But... I am..." Sai said confused.

"No." He said firmly, "I want the woman I love back. I want my Saiai."

"But..." She began. Kaze didn't let her finish. He pressed his lips against hers. The burning in Sai's mate mark intensified. Suddenly, all of his thoughts and memories began to rush into her mind. Her human blood cried out at the entry of them into her. Her humanity demanded its place back and Kaze's mind was helping it. The demon blood coursing through her fought back hard against the intrusion, but it couldn't last and was slowly pushed back. Sai's claws and fangs began to return to normal. The demon markings on her face began to fade as the red in her eyes began to recede to reveal her golden irises. It only took one last push for Sai to return to herself. With Kaze so close to her, she could make out each individual piece of his scent. She could smell his sweat. She could smell his hair. She could even smell his demon blood. But most of all, she could smell his humanity that burned with love for her.

Sai went limp in Kaze's arms and dropped to the ground. Kaze caught her before she could fully hit the ground. She had fainted from it all, but she had returned. He could tell by her scent. She had come back to him and he couldn't have been more grateful. His woman, his wife, his mate, had chosen him once again.


	40. Chapter 40

**Thank you to everyone who has favorited, followed, and reviewed this story! It warms a writer's heart to get such feedback. It makes writing fun. Hope you continue to enjoy and review!**

**Now for the story!**

Chapter 40

The full moon shined down on Kaze as he walked down the road that he and his friends had been traveling on the day before. Sai's unconscious form was heavy in his arms. On any other night, she wouldn't have been, but tonight was the night that his humanity took over his body. Because of this, he was having an extremely hard time of finding his friends. They had taken off when Kaze had told them to run, but they hadn't said where they were going. Now that Kaze had been searching for a few hours, he was getting tired and considering just finding a place to stop for the night and looking for his friends tomorrow when he had his demon senses back.

After another half hour of walking, Sai began to stir in Kaze's arms. He was carrying her bridal style, so she was able to toss and roll around in his arms, making holding onto her a bit difficult. She began to groan softly as her eyes flickered open.

"Well hey there my sleepyheaded demoness." Kaze said softly, "How do you feel?"

"Like roses. How do you think I feel?" Sai said sarcastically.

"Obviously pretty bad." Kaze said chuckling. Sai immediately regretted the tone in her voice. Kaze was just trying to help her and be a kind, caring husband.

"Sorry Kaze." She said softly, snuggling her head up against his chest.

"It's fine." He assured her, "You've been through a lot."

"How long have I been out?" Sai asked, noticing the darkness and Kaze's lack of demonic scent.

"A few hours. I turned human pretty soon after you fainted, so I've been walking most of the time in the direction that I last had everyone's scent." He explained.

"So you've carried me and all my gear for hours as a human?" Sai asked incredulously. Kaze smiled sheepishly and nodded, "Damn. Have I ever told you that you're the best husband ever?" Kaze laughed.

"You could stand to say it a bit more often." He joked. Sai laughed and hit him playfully. Kaze sighed, "C'mon. Let's stop for the night. I don't think that we're going to find them tonight. I'm exhausted and you're in no condition to walk." Sai nodded. As much as she wanted to keep going, she knew that Kaze was right. She could feel his arms weakening and smell his need for rest. He was also right that she was too weak to walk, let alone run.

Kaze found a place to camp after a few minutes of searching and sat Sai up against a tree. He got a fire going nearby and then went to join her. Sai leaned her head on his shoulder and snuggled up closer to him, while he put his arm around her to pull her into him.

"So what happened?" Sai asked after a few moments, "I mean, I remember some of the battle, but it ends after that sorceress hit me with that explosion."

"Yeah I guess you wouldn't remember the battle. You were in your demon form." Kaze said. Sai nodded. That was what she had figured.

"Did... Did I...?" Sai asked hesitantly.

"No." Kaze told her, cutting her off, "Everyone is okay and you didn't try to kill anybody. You were pretty pissed that I told our food to run away, though." Sai smiled weakly. That sounded like something she would do.

"No, you battled and finished off Haruka by ripping her heart out and then walked up to me on the hill. Your battle was pretty impressive. I had no idea you could be so good with your swords when your mind was gone." Kaze said.

"Hmm..." Sai mumbled, "I guess it's just instinct now. That's kinda nice to know. I do remember one more thing, though, from before I fainted."

"What's that?" Kaze asked curiously.

"You kissing me." Sai said simply. Kaze raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"Oh really? Is it a good memory?" He asked. Sai smiled.

"Yeah. Yeah it is." She told him, snuggling up closer to him.

"Good. I'm glad." He said contentedly.

"You know, you should be glad that you aren't a half-demon right now." Sai said mischievously. Kaze furrowed his brow in confusion.

"Why's that?" He asked. Sai chuckled.

"Because your sense of smell would be going crazy over me." She said, kissing his neck. Kaze groaned disappointedly.

"Damn." He cursed lightheartedly, "When's the sun come up again?" Sai laughed.

"It's alright. I can restrain myself a bit better than you." Sai jabbed, "Get some sleep. We'll save this for another time." Kaze pouted and put on a pretty good puppy dog face considering his actual canine features were gone. It made Sai laugh and led to Kaze giving up. Instead, he resorted to rubbing her ears softly making Sai growl contentedly. The man knew how to work her ears and she was fast asleep in no time. Kaze was quick to join her.

Nami awoke long before the sun had fully brightened the sky. She needed to find her brother and her sister-in-law. The others woke up from them sound of her activity and quickly joined her in getting ready to begin the search. Their ingenious plan was to use Kirara's nose to find the two. All of them were extremely worried. No one wanted to leave Kaze with the demon crazed Sai, but he was right in the fact that they had to get away. The main problem was that his demon blood had gone dormant along with the sun and was probably only just now coming back.

It wasn't long before they were all ready to search. Nami and Umi got on Kirara, who took the lead in the search, while Akage followed on foot. Kirara seemed to pick up the scent quickly and set of at a fast pace to find them. Akage was soon sorry that he had insisted that they run so far from Sai and Kaze. The pace was difficult even for his half-demon legs, but he was determined to keep it up. After all, his best friend and his wife were somewhere out there vulnerable to attack from anything.

The road on which they were traveling seemed empty. It was as if nothing was brave enough to venture out. Akage guessed that it was because everything had been sent into hiding by the sorceress Haruka. Now that she was gone, though, Akage guessed that it wouldn't be long before the demons and bandits returned to their hunt for food and resources. They needed to work fast. That's when, even with Akage's weak nose, he caught the scent of his friends.

"Guys! I got it too!" He called out to the girls on the cat demon, "They're close."

Sai awoke as a distinctly familiar scent filled her lungs, but she was too tired to identify it. She realized quickly that she was not in position in which she had gone to sleep. Instead, she and Kaze were cuddled in each other's embrace. Sai was okay with that. It was a comfortable position and Kaze was warm and had a pleasant scent, her favorite truth be told. As she drifted back to sleep, the faint sound of footsteps and talking hit her ears, but she decided to ignore it. And ignore it she did until she was awoken rather rudely.

"AWWWWWW! They're SO cute!" Umi squealed.

"I know right!" Nami agreed, "Sai's lucky our brother had us for sisters." Sai and Kaze both groaned as they forced their eyes open to identify the annoying sounds.

"You guys suck, you know that?" Kaze said drearily.

"Seriously." Sai agreed, rolling away from Kaze and rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"You know you love us." Umi said confidently as she jumped down from that cat demon. She was quickly joined by her sister.

"Thanks Kirara! Good work!" Nami said, petting the purring cat demon before she changed into her tiny form. Sai and Kaze groaned again as they stood up and stretched.

"Nope. Pretty sure you still suck." Kaze reaffirmed. Sai nodded her agreement.

"Whatever." Nami said dismissively, "Akage, what do you think about all of this? You've been pretty quiet."

"Trying too hard not to laugh and think of a way to do that with you at the same time." He answered. Nami smiled broadly and laughed.

"Aww. Thanks babe. You're the best." She said, taking him into a tight hug. Akage winked at Kaze making him roll his eyes at the antics of his friend.

"Yeah, yeah, cut it out you two." Sai insisted, "If you insisted on waking us up this early, let's at least start moving."

"You sure you're ready to move out yet Sai?" Kaze asked, concerned for the wellbeing of his mate, "You didn't look so good last night." It made Sai smile that her husband was worried about her, but she felt confident that she could travel.

"Yeah I'm sure Kaze. It might be a good idea, though, if we went a bit slower than normal." Sai admitted. Kaze nodded his understanding and was about to say something else before he was interrupted by Umi clearing her throat.

"Aren't you guys forgetting about breakfast?" She pointed out, "I'm guessing that guys didn't eat dinner and neither did we. We're gonna need food if we want to travel." Sai and Kaze scratched their heads, embarrassed at their oversight.

"I guess you're right." Sai admitted.

After eating what food Akage and the twins managed to kill or forage from the surrounding forest, the group set out on its journey once again, though, a at a slightly more relaxed pace. However, even at such a slow pace for her, Sai quickly found it to be uncomfortable. Her battle inside herself the day before with her demon blood had taken a massive toll on her energy. Despite this, she didn't admit it to any of the others, though Kaze was well aware of it through their connection via the mate mark. He didn't want to say anything as it would hurt her pride, but it hurt him just as much to see her uncomfortable. Because of this, he resolved to make sure that they stopped before she ran herself into the ground.

This moment came just after midday. This was fortunate for Kaze. He could pass off his insistence to stop as a desire for food instead of insisting that they stop because of Sai. He knew that it already took enough resolve for her to ask for a slower pace in their travel.

"Hey guys." Kaze called out, "Let's break for lunch. I'm getting kind of hungry."

"Sounds like a good idea to me." Akage agreed. Sai simply nodded, not wanting to give away her current physical state by revealing her labored breathing through speech. Nami and Umi also quickly agreed. They found a small hillside and Akage, Nami, and Umi set out to find more food. Once they were out of earshot, Sai turned to Kaze and smiled weakly.

"Thanks." She said, finally acknowledging how tired she really was. Kaze faked a look a innocence.

"What do you mean? I just wanted some lunch." He told her. Sai chuckled.

"I'm not stupid Kaze. I can tell through my mark that you're not even hungry and I know that you can tell I'm exhausted, but too proud to admit it." Sai admitted. Kaze smiled.

"You caught me." He joked, "And don't worry about it. It's the absolute least I could do."

"Think the others could tell?" Sai asked, worried.

"Don't know." Kaze shrugged, "Probably. They are your best friends. Plus Akage is a half demon and could probably sense your tiredness, though, not as well as I could." Sai nodded and sighed.

"Damn. I hate being the one that always slows us down." Sai said. Kaze's face quickly became serious.

"You are not slowing us down." Kaze insisted, "You are the one that always fights the battles and takes on the full force of the enemy. The rest of us just do back up while you steal the show. Without you, we wouldn't even be this far. Taking a break to rest is not slowing us down when we have you to carry us forward." Sai smiled and hugged her mate.

"You always know just what to say don't you?" She said, emotion clear in her voice.

"Ha. I wish. I'm pretty sure I'm running out of romantic comments." He joked. Sai laughed.

"Well I hope you have enough left in you to last us till we take out the empire." Sai told him.

"I might be able to manage that." Kaze said light heartedly, "Now c'mon. They're almost back with food."

"Good." Sai breathed, breaking away from Kaze, "You may not be hungry, but I'm starving."

Kaze dragged out lunch for as long as possible. After about an hour, he finally felt that Sai was ready to travel again. They set out at a slightly slower pace than the one that they had used earlier that day. Sai was thankful for that, but it didn't make her feel any better. At least it was faster than walking.

"Sai!" Nami called out, "You smell a village nearby?"

"Yeah. I could really use a bath." Umi said hopefully. Sai sniffed the air and nodded.

"We should get there before nightfall." She told them.

"Thank all that is holy!" Nami cheered, "Sleeping in the woods is not my thing."

"We definitely have never been able to tell." Kaze said sarcastically, "I mean, you hide it so well." Nami shot him a look that Kaze immediately shrugged off.

"It's a good thing that you guys are siblings." Akage commented, "Otherwise I'm pretty sure that you would have killed each other."

"Whatever Akage." Kaze said, annoyed, "Hey didn't Nami want to have a "talk" with you over a certain comment that you made?"

"What?" Akage panicked as Nami remembered the incident and became angry again.

"Oh yeah. I said we needed to have a talk and you FORGOT?!" Nami yelled furiously at the now terrified half-demon.

"Um... Well..." Akage stammered, "A lot was going on, you know. I mean Sai was in danger and all."

"Don't try and make excuses Akage." Kaze insisted, "It'll only make it worse." Akage shot him a look that promised revenge. Sai leaned in to the Kaze's ear.

"What's going on?" She whispered.

"Akage may have said that your argument with Haruka was "hot" and "a turn on" and that angered my dear sister." He whispered back. Sai blushed at Akage's comments, but nodded and kept silent, while Akage was screamed at by his girlfriend.

"So," Nami ranted, "Sai is right over there. Why don't you go jump her bones? I'm certainly not stopping you."

"Nami you misunderstand. I-" Akage tried to say.

"What's to misunderstand, huh? HUH? I heard you perfectly clear!" Nami screamed.

"Nami, I'm sorry! I swear I didn't mean anything by it!" Akage insisted.

"I don't want to hear it! Now I know where your real loyalties lie!" Nami said, turning away from him. Umi, sympathetic to Akage's plight, leaned in to whisper to her sister.

"Hey sis, you can't be too hard on him." She said. Nami turned angrily on her sister.

"Why the hell not?" She demanded.

"Well, if you'll remember, you've flirted with the guys at every single village we've been to since Akage has been with us." Umi pointed out. Nami's retort died in her throat. Her sister was right. Suddenly, she was the one feeling guilty. As opposed to Akage's one comment, she had repeatedly abandoned him to talk to other men. Akage, however, hadn't heard what Umi had said and was busy panicking about what Nami would do next. Kaze smirked.

"I think you'll end up thanking me for this later." He whispered.

"What? Why would I do that?" Akage demanded.

"Watch..." Kaze said, pointing to his sister. Nami was on the verge of tears.

"Nami! What's wrong?" Akage asked, worried about what else he might have done wrong, "Nami..." However, before he could say anymore, Nami jumped from Kirara's back and wrapped her arms around Akage, sending them tumbling to the ground. Nami was sobbing into Akage's shoulder.

"I'm sorry Akage! I've been such a flirt! I didn't even consider your feelings!" Nami screamed hysterically.

"Ummm... It's... alright?" Akage said, unsure of what was going on at the moment.

"No it's not!" Nami insisted, "It's no wonder you said such a thing. You were trying to send a message to me about how hurt you were by my actions. Well I got it and I'm sorry for everything! I love you and I never want to hurt you again!"

"Um... I... I love you too..." Akage said hesitantly.

"Can you ever forgive me Akage?" Nami begged.

"Uhhh... Sure..." He said wrapping his arms around her. Nami continued her hysterics for another few minutes before Sai broke them up.  
"Come now you two." She said, dragging them to their feet, "Let's get going." Nami agreed hesitantly, while Akage was much quicker to agree. Before long, they were on their way on the road yet again.

**Not gonna lie. This was a fluff chapter. Can't have crazy action happening every chapter now can I? Hope you guys enjoyed it nonetheless. Anyway, please review the story and check out my other story, Crossed Swords and Crossed Lovers. Writing both at the same time is a bit difficult, but I think they're both pretty good.**


	41. Chapter 41

**I'm REALLY sorry that this update has been so much later than all of the others. Life has been hectic and I haven't had much time to write. Don't worry. I know exactly where I'm going with the story right now, so when I do get chances to write, it normally comes pretty quickly. And hey, I still updated less than a week after my last one which is a whole heck of a lot faster than half of the stories on this site. I do it all because I love you guys!**

**Well I guess you're tired of reading my apologies and waiting for the story, so... ONWARD!**

Chapter 41

The sun was setting quickly on the horizon, while the air became comfortably cool. Sai took in the smells of life and civilization as they approached the village. It was small, but by the looks of how worn the road was, Sai could guess that it was a stopover for traveling merchants. That meant that it would have a nice inn somewhere. Sai could only hope that Mageru had worked his magic again and that they would be sleeping for free that night. The only thing strange was that the smell of flowers in the area was extremely strong. It was pleasant, but it had the effect of making Sai and Kaze both more than a little high. Even Kirara was feeling the effects. Through her haze, Sai became vaguely aware that Nami was saying something.

"Um... Sorry Nami. What'd you say?" Sai asked, trying to focus.

"I asked if anyone else felt that." Nami repeated. Sai gave her a confused look along with Kaze who had forced himself back to reality as well.

"Feel what?" He asked. Nami looked extremely concerned and that worried everyone since no one seemed to see what she was getting at.

"There's a chill in the air. It's worrying me." She admitted.

"Well yeah. It's getting cooler, but I don't think we have to worry about that. We'll be at the village in about a half hour." Umi assured her. However, Nami shook her head.

"No, no it's not that. This chill feels... unnatural. I don't know. Cold as in devoid of emotion or human warmth and love." Nami told them. Sai didn't understand what Nami was feeling. In her, admittedly hazy, mind, everything seemed normal.

"I don't feel it Nami." Sai called out to her, "Maybe you're just imagining things." Nami nodded, but the look of worry stayed on her face.

"Cheer up Nami!" Akage said happily, "I mean, we're going to be sleeping inside tonight. I thought you were excited about that." Nami flashed him a weak smile.

"Yeah I guess I am." She said before turning her face forward to look at the horizon.

The village came into view a half hour later, just as predicted. They stopped and adopted their more human appearances before continuing anywhere near the village. A few minutes later, just as the sun was on the cusp of disappearing completely behind the horizon, they arrived in the village and quickly found the inn. There were very few people about. Sai guessed that they were all either at home or on their way there, but she couldn't be sure because of the ever present scent of flowers. Inside the inn, there were even less people about. That was also to be expected since trade traffic had gone down considerably with the onset of the demon purges. Sai decided that everything was as it should be and thought nothing more of the absence of the people before sending Akage and Umi off to find the innkeeper since they were the only ones still in their right minds. Their search didn't last long. They found a tired looking old man in the process of nodding off in the main room. To their surprise, he didn't even bother asking them for money for the rooms. He simply told them where they were and that dinner would be served soon before promptly falling asleep.

They found the three adjacent rooms at the end of the hall, just as the tired old innkeeper had said. In keeping with the same rooming arrangements as before, Sai and Kaze took the first room, while Nami and Akage took the second and Umi and Kirara took the last. Once inside the room, Sai and Kaze immediately fell into fits of giggling from their light headed state and found their way to the bedding in the room.

"Damn these flowers are nice!" Sai managed to get out in between fits.

"No kidding. They make everything feel so warm and fuzzy." Kaze agreed.

"I know right!" Sai said as a wanton smile spread across her face, "You know what else they make me feel?" Kaze giggled dumbly.

"What?" He asked, too high to be able to pick up the obvious hint. Of course Sai was too high to be able realize that her hint was obvious and just giggled along with him. Both of them were too high too notice the heavy footsteps outside and the strange sounds that filtered into their small room.

"They make me really horny." She finally managed out once the most recent fit had subsided. Kaze smiled.

"I don't think I'm in the mood for dinner anymore." He told her. Sai rolled her body on top of his and gave him a quick kiss on the lips.

"Me either." She whispered as she went in for a longer, but decidedly sloppy kiss. However, before they could intensify their pre existing feelings of ecstasy, they were rudely roused by the sound of their door being broken down. The two lovers turned around lazily to face their intruders. Their gaze was met by three men with swords and glazed over eyes standing where the door once had.

"Good." The middle one said, "You won't be getting any dinner this night." Sai rolled off of her mate and looked at the three men before immediately bursting into laughter.

"Kaze! Kaze look! They've got swords! They have swords, but they're made of rice and the guys are made of noodles!" Sai, in her scent induced delusion, was laughing at the absurdity of her hallucinations like a little girl. Kaze, in his own delusion, was laughing hysterically along with her. The men, however, continued their glassy, unblinking stare.

"Get them." The middle one said, maintaining his monotone. The two on either side of him sheathed their swords and moved forward to the hysterical forms of Sai and Kaze, which were still rolling on the floor in fits of uncontrollable laughter. Both of the men produced lengths of rope and began to tie them up to the point where neither was able to move. They didn't seem to notice and kept on laughing.

"Knock them out." The middle one commanded. The other two pulled out a pair of small red flowers and held them directly under the noses of Sai and Kaze. Both half demons immediately reverted back to their demonic forms and promptly passed out. The men then dragged them from the inn and off into the night.

Umi could hear the sounds of her friends being abducted, but there was nothing she could do about it. There were three men, obviously possessed by the look of their glassy eyes that never blinked, standing armed in her own room. Kirara wasn't going to be any help because she had passed out on the floor and it sounded like Sai, Kaze, Nami, and Akage had all been taken without a fight. That didn't make sense to Umi, but she didn't have time to ponder it. She made a dash to the far corner of the room where she had deposited her swords and grabbed the blades. The men made a move to stop her, but they were sluggish and sloppy. It would have been easy to kill them, but Umi could not bring herself to end the lives of men that were not in control of themselves.

"Dammit." She cursed under her breath, "Guess I'll just have to keep the blades sheathed. Maybe then I can at least knock them out." The men didn't react to her words and simply walked towards her with their own blades drawn and ready for blood

Umi saw her opening. There was a table right by her which she could use to interrupt the movements of her attackers. She shifted both of her blades to her left hand and grabbed a leg of the table. Before the possessed men could react, she flung the furniture at them causing them to stumble and drop their swords. Umi took the opportunity to rush forward with her sheathed blades and skillfully place solid blows on each of their heads, effectively knocking each one out. To her dismay, however, she heard the footsteps of more men coming down the hallway. She cursed under her breath and immediately wished that there had been a window placed in this room. Since there hadn't been, she rushed out into the hallway to be met by the glazed over stares of twelve men, all armed with swords.

"Surrender now and come with us." The lead man commanded. Umi smirked.

"No way in hell am I coming with you, you damn puppet!" She barked back. The men were unfazed by her words and instead began to move forward. Umi sighed. She didn't see any way to get out of this. She couldn't avoid them because the only way out was the hallway which they were currently clogging and she couldn't kill them. Her only option was to try and knock them all out before trying to make her escape.

"Here goes nothing..." She muttered to herself. With that, she charged, her sheathed blades leading the way. The man in the lead swung clumsily at her, but she easily ducked below it and dealt a crushing blow to his shin. This made the man fall in pain allowing Umi to deal a blow to his head and knock him out. The two men behind him rushed forward to attack her only to be stopped by Umi stabbing the blades forward into their stomachs. They doubled over giving Umi an open shot. Soon they too joined their comrade on the floor. A fourth man charged. He swung his blade blindly. Umi blocked the attack, knocking the blade out of his hands and sending it flying into the wall where it stuck. She quickly whirled around with her other blade and slammed it into the side of his head, adding another man to the pile of unconscious bodies. The next three went down in a very similar manner with Umi masterfully wielding her blades to deal out non fatal blows to each man.

Umi's luck was not to last forever. The last five finally seemed to obtain some degree of intelligence and attacked as a group. Umi held off their sloppy attacks for a time, but could not withstand the assault forever. Eventually, one of them got a good cut in on her right thigh sending her to the ground. The men gathered around her and looked on before approaching her vulnerable form with weapons at the ready. Umi watched each of their steps and waited for them to get closer. When they finally came into range, she used her left leg to kick out the legs the man that blocked her path to the hallway leading out of the inn. The man fell to the ground and hit hard. Umi immediately popped up, lept over the body, and sprinted down the hallway. She winced at the pain pulsing from her leg and silently prayed that there would be no more armed men waiting for her. The sight that greeted her as she burst forth from the inn told her that this was not to be so. Fifty more armed men awaited her while the five she had left behind were in the process of blocking her way back into the inn. Umi was effectively trapped.

"Damn it all to hell!" Umi cursed, her voice ringing out in the silent night air. She got no response from the men. She growled in frustration, "Guess I'm gonna have to fight a-" However, before she could finish her sentence, a flash of white hot pain exploded across the back of her head. Her mind went blank as her knees followed by the rest of her body crashed to the ground. Over her stood, the soldier that she had kicked to the ground. He held a piece of wood in his hands that was now stained with a small bit of Umi's blood. The man dropped the wood and tied Umi up as had been done with the others and dragged her off into the darkness.

**Sorry! I know this chapter was a little on the shorter side, but a lot still happened and we got to see Umi fight alone for the first time. She's pretty amazing with her two blades even when she isn't trying to hack someone's head off. Anyway, I hope to be able to update again soon and appease your desires for more of this story. Also... PLEASE REVIEW! It would make me very happy. Big shout out to KagomeInuyasha92! So glad that you review and aren't afraid to ask questions. Plus you even checked out my other story, Crossed Swords and Crossed Lovers, and reviewed that too. You really make a writer feel loved. Also, many thanks to everyone else who has reviewed so far! You guys are the best! Love you guys! Hope you keep reading and keep enjoying A New Act!**


	42. Chapter 42

**GAAAH! I know it has been awhile since I last updated. SOOO sorry guys. Life sucks and got really busy so I didn't have any time to write. In fact, my writing of this chapter got interrupted so many times, it's not even funny. Hopefully, that will be stopping soon so that I can update more often for my lovely readers. I even tried to make this chapter extra long for you guys as a way of apologizing. A lot happens and I add some crazy stuff, but just go with it alright. It'll all make sense soon enough... maybe... Guess you'll just have to read to find out! And review... Reviewing would be super nice...**

**Anyway, enough of my rant. On to the story!**

Chapter 42

Koga and Ayame were sleeping peacefully inside their den. Life had been fairly uneventful for them and their pack since they had left Sai and the others at their command. It wasn't difficult for them to smell that the sorceress had been killed and their borders had been strangely silent. That had been an extremely uncommon commodity for them to have peace, but they were thankful for it since it meant that they were getting some rest and they didn't have to rely on the Panthers as much. Koga knew it wouldn't last for long, but hoped that it would continue for at least another week so that he could take a break and be with his new pup. However, the feeling wouldn't leave him that he would have no such luck.

As these thoughts passed through Koga's sleeping mind, the inside of his wrist began to burn intensely. It was as if the Sun was scorching itself into his skin. The pain was unbearable. Koga bolted up from his sleep and clutched the wrist of his right hand. He tried desperately not to scream out in pain and wake up his pack members. They didn't need to have their peace interrupted by his problems. However, there was one person he could not keep in the dark. Ayame sensed Koga's pain and his panic through their connection as mates and immediately woke up to come to the aid of her beloved. She took him into her arms and did her best to soothe him, but to no avail.

"What's wrong Koga? What's going on?" Ayame asked, concern and panic mixing in her voice.

"My wrist..." He forced through gritted teeth, "It's on fire!" Ayame's heartbeat quickened. She couldn't bear to see her mate in such pain.

"What's causing it?" She begged, "What can I do to make the pain go away?" Koga stifled another cry of pain before trying to gather his thoughts.

"I don't-" Koga began to say before the memory stopped him in his tracks. He knew exactly what this pain was. It was because of a day over fifteen years ago.

Koga was sitting alone on a rock outside of his den. Most of his pack was either out hunting or on patrol. Even Ayame was out leading a diplomatic mission to a neighboring tribe. Normally that would have have been his job, but this tribe just so happened to be matriarchal, so they decided that it was best to send an all female envoy. In all honesty, he was quite bored. That is, until he caught the scent of an old rival. The scent of the half dog demon Inuyasha was in the air and was closing in on him fast. He decided that, since he had nothing better to do, maybe he would sit around and wait for the mutt. If all turned out well, he might even get to fight him. That would at least entertain him for a little while.

It was another few minutes before his signature bright red clothing came into view. Koga smirked. He could smell the frustration radiating off of him from where he was sitting.

"KOGA!" Inuyasha yelled.

"Pipe down mutt! I can hear you and I caught your stench awhile ago." Koga shot back. Inuyasha slid to a stop in front of the wolf demon and growled.

"Let's not talk about who's stench is worse you mangy wolf. We all know you stink to high hell." Inuyasha taunted.

"What are you here for anyway mutt?" Koga demanded, getting straight to the point, "If you didn't notice, this is wolf territory." Inuyasha growled.

"How could I miss that little fact when it stinks so bad..." Inuyasha muttered quietly, though it was not missed by Koga's hearing. He scowled, but let Inuyasha continue, "I came here because... because I need your help." Koga's jaw dropped. He couldn't believe his ears. That was not what he had been expecting to hear.

"You? Are coming to me? For help?" Koga asked incredulously. Inuyasha frowned deeply, but nodded.

"Yeah." He affirmed.

"What the hell with?" Koga demanded.

"Look, you know I just had a daughter. I'm sure even your nose can smell her on me." Inuyasha began hesitantly.

"Yeah." Koga said, who was actually slightly embarrassed since he hadn't caught the scent of the newborn half-demon until she had been mentioned, "What of it?"

"I need to make sure she is always safe, so I... I... well... I..." Inuyasha stuttered, while Koga waited expectantly. He paused and took a deep breath before finishing, "I need you to be her godfather."

"What?"Koga asked, confused, "Why the hell would you want that?" Inuyasha groaned at the prospect of having to explain something that he thought was obvious.

"It's a simple ritual. We each bite each other's wrists at the same time, while thinking about our mates and any children that we have or hope to have. That will create a mark that will only appear when one of our children is in danger that would be inescapable without the godparent's help. It's a way of making sure that they're always safe." He explained.

"So you would automatically become the godfather of my pups?" Koga asked for clarification.

"Yeah." Inuyasha said, nodding, "It works both ways. We would both have to protect the other's kids in times of danger."

"Why the hell are you coming to me for this?" Koga demanded, still confused as to why he'd been chosen, "Why not that brother of yours? Sesshomaru or whatever the hell his name is?"

"He's connected by blood. He'll already be aware of the danger. Problem is, he probably won't come. He'd rather see the girl fight it out on her own, even with impossible odds. Plus, I won't be informed by any sort of mark or magic. For some reason, I get left in the dark." Inuyasha explained. Koga growled as he thought it over. He didn't like the fact that this would tie him to the mutt, but he had to admit that it wouldn't be a bad thing for his future pups to be guarded, especially by Inuyasha. Even Koga had to admit that he was strong.

"Fine." The young leader of the wolf demons said after a moment, "I'll do it. Let's just make this quick. I don't want my wife walking in on this." Inuyasha smirked and stifled a laugh.

"Agreed." He said, walking over to the wolf demon. They each held out their right arm for the other to take. Once they were in position and had thoughts of their mates and pups in mind, they bit into the other's wrists simultaneously. Blood mixed with saliva and started to sizzle causing a strange tingling sensation in both of their mouths. The two disengaged after a second and allowed the blood to drip to the ground. The family crest of each of them appeared on their wrists before slowly fading away leaving only their normal bare skin behind. Koga and Inuyasha nodded at each other before turning away and leaving without another word.

That brought Koga to the point he was at now. He looked down at the wrist of his right arm. Sure enough, Inuyasha's family crest was there. The familiar crossed swords and full moon mark was burning a bright red on his skin. As soon as he realized what it was, the pain immediately stopped, while the glow continued.

"Koga?" Ayame asked, worry clear in her voice. This brought Koga out of his thoughts as he turned to face his mate. Her face was pale, but then again, so was his.

"Sai's in trouble." He said, hurrying to get up, "She needs our help." Ayame bolted up and followed Koga to edge of the den.

"Hold up!" She said just loud enough to hear, but not to wake their sleeping comrades, "How do you know?"

"I'll tell you on the way. For now, though, you gotta trust me. We have to move fast." He told her. Ayame nodded. She would trust Koga with anything. With that, the two sprinted off into the night following where Koga's mark led them.

Sai was rudely awakened by a terrible pain in the upper part of both of her arms. It took her moment for her eyes to adjust to the darkness, but her demon sight quickly lit up the area as bright as day. The first thing she noticed was that she was half naked, only wearing her undergarments. That was more than a little disturbing. The next thing that she noticed was that she was hanging by chains and iron shackles that were fastened around her wrists. That was more disturbing, but did explain her shoulder pain. She was glad for her tough skin, otherwise the shackles would likely have cut deep into her flesh. Under normal circumstances, she would have been able to wrench apart the iron easily, but it was obvious that she was still suffering from the effects of some sort of drug. No matter how hard she tried, her movements and thoughts were sluggish and unnervingly weak.

After a few minutes of struggle that got her nowhere, Sai decided to give up trying to break her shackles and instead take the opportunity to survey her surroundings. She was in a cave. That much was obvious. The next thing she noticed was that she was alone. There were iron bars separating the small space that she occupied from a much larger space outside. She could see her weapons alongside the weapons of all of her companions on large wooden table lit by a few candles and a torch on the far wall. Sai silently cursed. The presence of those weapons meant that whoever had her also had her friends. She couldn't confirm it by smell, since this too was dulled by whatever drug had been given to her, but it didn't take long before she could confirm it by her hearing.

"Damn all of you bastards to hell!" Came Umi's familiar defiant voice, "I'll kill every last one of you! Let me and my friends out now so that we can fight!" Sai smiled. She knew her friend could fight like that for hours. The only problem was, there didn't seem to be anyone around to listen.

"Hey Umi." Sai called out weakly. Umi's rant stopped immediately.

"Sai? You're in here too?" The girl asked, obviously hoping that she had been hearing things. Sai was sad that she would have to burst this bubble.

"Yeah." She confirmed sadly.

"Damn." She cursed, "I was hoping that maybe you guys had escaped or something, though even I doubted that much."

"I could tell by what you were yelling. You weren't wrong. I know you can't see it, but they've got all of our weapons piled up on a table outside each one of our prison cells. That means they have all of us and we're the only ones awake yet." Sai explained. She heard Umi utter a string of loud and bitter curses.

"Dammit!" Umi finished, "What the hell are we supposed to do now?" Sai laughed weakly.

"Well, the rest of us seemed to have been drugged or something along those lines. You seem lively as ever, though, so I guess they didn't give it to you for some reason." She explained.

"Yeah I guess they thought I would stay knocked out longer." Umi surmised, "Even I'm surprised that I'm up. I can feel the blood caking up my hair. But I've got a more important question. Why didn't you guys fight?" Sai groaned. She didn't want to think about how her own stupidity had left Umi to apparently fight some enemy on her own.

"There was an intense smell in the air. It played with our minds and left us unable to fight back. Bastards were clever." Sai spat.

"That doesn't explain everything." Umi said, much to Sai's surprise, "Akage didn't fight and his sense of smell doesn't even come close to yours or Kaze's. Nami didn't fight either and she's human like me. I don't get why I was the only one to fight." Sai's brow furrowed in confusion. Umi was right. That smell wouldn't have incapacitated everyone. It would have only taken out her, Kaze, and Kirara. Now none of it made sense.

"I don't get it either." Sai said eventually, frustration building.

"What could have stopped them?" Umi asked, "They aren't ones to give up without a fight. I can understand you and Kaze since you were taken out by your nose, but the others I don't get. Do you?"

"Dammit Umi!" Sai snapped, "No! I don't have a clue and it's pissing me off! It's not helping that I can't break some iron shackles and get out of this damn prison!" Sai began to breathe heavily after her outburst. The fact that simply yelling had taken so much out of her pissed her off even more. Umi didn't say anything back. She was quiet, which was strange for the girl. This made Sai realize that she had snapped at one of her closest friends for no reason other than she was mad at something she had nothing to do with.

"Sorry Umi. I didn't mean to scream at you alright." Sai said, ashamed of herself, "I'm just frustrated. This is all crazy and I don't understand it. I can't help but think that it's somehow all my fault." Umi chuckled at this.

"How would it be your fault Sai?" Umi asked in disbelief.

"I should have noticed something was wrong. The scent of flowers everywhere, but no flowers. The absence of people in a trade village. The fact that Nami sensed something wrong that I didn't listen to at all." Sai ranted on the verge of tears, "I put everyone in danger because of my own stupidity. I mean, hell, we're still in danger and I don't see a way out."

"And this is your fault how?" Umi asked, "You forget that the rest of us missed all of those signs too. I mean, I might not have the nose you and Kaze do, but I did notice something was wrong with you two. It's not hard to tell when your brother and best friend are acting strangely and I did nothing about it. I was too busy thinking about a warm bed. We're all to blame here."

"She's right." Came a distinctly male voice. It was a voice that she knew well and loved with all of her heart. The fact that it was now trying to her that it was okay somehow seemed wrong to her and pushed her over the edge.

"Dammit Kaze!" Sai yelled, now sobbing hysterically, "Stop doing that!" Kaze chuckled weakly while Umi laughed heartily.

"Stop what?" He coughed, "Telling the truth or loving you? I'll say no to both of those." Sai didn't answer, but instead continued crying. It wasn't logical, but Sai wasn't exactly in the mood for logic at the moment.

"Why is Sai crying?" Nami asked weakly from her cell, joining in unexpectedly to the conversation.

"Well from what I've gathered," Akage began, speaking for the first time, "She thinks that this is all her fault."

"As if." Nami said sarcastically, "I'm pretty sure you're the least at fault here Sai. You were high out of your mind."

"Hey!" Kaze interjected playfully, "So was I!" Kirara meowed as if to put in that she was more than a bit out of it too. This made everyone, even Sai through her tears, laugh at the cat demon's antics.

"You guys suck." Sai managed through her laughs and sobs, though she didn't really mean it.

"Yeah, I'm sure." Akage said jokingly, "But I really think we should focus on how to get out of here."

"I wouldn't worry about that one too much." A strange new voice responded from outside of their cells, causing the five of them to go silent, "You won't be getting out until I say so."

"Who the hell are you?" Kaze demanded, his voice hard and strikingly similar to that of a crazed dog, "And what the hell do you want with us?" The voice chuckled.

"That's always the question isn't it?" The voice was rough, masculine, and terrifying, "And I'm afraid that the answer isn't that simple." Kaze and Sai growled threateningly, not liking the response.

"I think we can keep up." Umi spat bitterly. This only made the voice laugh.

"Maybe, maybe not. I'll leave that to you." It said cryptically.

"Answer the damn question!" Akage demanded, "And you could at least show yourself instead of hiding in the shadows." As the last syllable left his tongue, the entire room was bathed in an intense white light. A separate room was lit up as a consequence. The room was small and dominated by the table that Sai had seen earlier. Nothing else was worthy of note except for the entrance to a hallway that was visible, though it was impossible to see down said passage. The source of the voice was hidden inside this area that was kept from them

"I believe that settles at least part of one of your demands." The voice said calmly, "As for the other, I would advise each of you to examine to left wall of your cell." Sai furrowed her brow in confusion. She hadn't seen anything before when she had checked. However, when she heard the gasps of her friends, she decided that it was worth a second glance.

The sight that met her eyes made her jaw drop. Burned freshly into the wall of her prison cell was a symbol that had been etched permanently into her memory. The representation of what they had been searching and fighting so hard for was now staring her straight in the face.

"The embodiment of love." Sai said breathlessly. The voice chuckled again.

"Indeed." It said.

"But... H-h-how?" Nami stammered.

"I may be an object, dear girl, but that does not mean that I cannot take a physical form." The voice told them.

"Wait, hold on." Kaze said, "You're telling us that you are the embodiment of love?"

"Yes." The voice affirmed simply. Kaze growled in apprehension.

"But the embodiment is supposed to be pure and unadulterated! Any idiot can feel the evil radiating off of you!" He barked out.

"You are correct." The voice said, sounding almost sad, "And that is why I have brought you here." No one spoke. In reality, none of them knew what to say because that wasn't what they had been expecting to hear. None of this was. It all made absolutely no sense. As if sensing everyone's confusion, the source of the voice finally decided that it was time to make itself known by revealing itself to its captives. The man that met their stares was decidedly... ordinary. He seemed like any normal human man. He wasn't particularly attractive, but he wasn't hideous. His age couldn't have topped 40, but couldn't have been below 35. His hair was short and black, though clearly balding. Not even his eyes held any particularly memorable features. They were a dull brown. The only thing wrong was that evil was pouring out of him.

"My guess is that I am not what you were expecting." The man said bluntly, his face emotionless.

"Not in the slightest." Umi said, voice still apprehensive and bitter.

"It doesn't matter what you look like!" Sai bit out, "What do you want with us?!"

"Your help." The man said simply.

"And why the hell would we help you?" Akage demanded.

"Because you need me and you need me purified. I want you to help me rid myself of evil." The man began. Kaze started to form a retort, but was cut off before he could speak, "As you said, I must be pure and unadulterated. However, I have come into the hands of one of the most evil demons to ever walk this earth. His mere presence, let alone his ownership, has defiled me greatly. Your group, though, has the highest concentration of spiritual energy that there has ever been in history. It is the only thing that can purge Konton's evil from my form. If you purify me, I will lead you to where my true essence is being held and make a way for you to enter." Everyone was silent for moment as they took their time to process the information. The man before them waited patiently for their answer. However, Akage was not willing for the discussion to end just yet.

"Hold up." He said suddenly, "If you want our help, then why do this? Hell, how did you do this?" The man frowned, showing emotion for the first time.

"Well, primarily, it was to get your attention. However, there is another reason. As I said, I am immensely defiled at the moment. This fact would not allow me to approach the situation in any other way. I had to take advantage of you or hurt you in some way in order to even go ahead with this plan. For that, I am sorry." The man explained, "As for how, I drugged your companions with more sensitive noses with a scent that is utterly intoxicating to mated dog demons. It is meant to spur love and mating between them, which is why I control it. I'd say it worked pretty well considering the position I found you in. It has a side effect of putting most other demons with sensitive noses to sleep, explaining your cat demon. As for the other couple in the group, I simply knocked you out with my own power. Since I am the embodiment of love, I do have a certain amount of control over lovers. The last girl, due to the fact that she is human and has no lover, I simply had to capture the hard way."

"You're a sick bastard, you know that." Umi spat. The man smiled.

"No, Konton is. Under normal circumstances, I would never have dreamed of doing this, but due to my current state of defilement, I didn't really have a choice in the matter. Evil begets evil, my dear." He said calmly. Kaze growled, not liking it, but accepting it for the time being.

"Whatever. You gave us your little story, now let us out. If you want us to purify you, you need to free us." He pointed out.

"Well that's another problem." The man standing outside of their bars said, scratching his head nervously, "Because I'm in this state, my mind won't allow me to free you."

"WHAT!" All five of them yelled in unison. The man held up his hands to stem the oncoming onslaught of curses and insults.

"I have a plan." He assured them, "In fact, your rescue should be here within the next few minutes."

"Our rescue?" Sai demanded, utterly confused. However, before the man could answer and right on cue, they heard what he was talking about.

"SAI!" Yelled the familiar voice of the young leader of the wolf demons, "SAI! Just hold on! We'll be there soon!"

"KOGA!" Sai called back, desperately needing to inform him of the situation, "Don't kill the man that's with us! I know he feels evil, but we need him alive!"

"Got it!" Ayame's voice answered. The man in question gave Sai a thankful look. Sai returned it with a snarl.

"I didn't say they couldn't knock you the hell out." She threatened menacingly. The man's face fell, but before he could protest, two familiar whirlwinds entered into the room and a brown fur clad leg connected with the man's head, sending him flying into the stone wall of the cave where he was promptly knocked unconscious. Now, standing where he once stood, were Koga and Ayame. Both had stern and confused looks on their faces.

"What are you guys doing here and why don't any of you have clothes on?" Koga asked, clearly concerned for his goddaughter.

"Long story." Kaze told him, sighing heavily, "Just get us out of here." The two nodded and after a few good kicks and slashes, all of the shackles and chains were gone and they were free. Once they had quickly gotten dressed and equipped themselves, they moved as quickly as possible, which wasn't very fast since the drugs in Sai and Kaze hadn't worn off yet, with the man claiming to be the embodiment slung over Koga's shoulder. The night was cool, but that was alright. They had a long, hard run back to Koga's den anyway.

**Once again, super sorry for the late update, especially on a cliffy like that at the end of 41. That just wasn't right. If I was a reader, I would have hated me. Also, pollzyclaire, Sai is 15, soooo... yeah that might happen. Just not yet... or maybe yet... or maybe not... haven't decided yet. But at least you're thinking and giving me suggestions. I like that and would love it from all of my faithful readers. Also, don't be afraid to give criticism. I love the love I'm getting from the reviews so far and it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy, but criticism is what makes a writer better, so if you have anything you think I can do better on then let me know. Plus, I'll answer any questions you guys have too because I'm just a nice person like that.**


	43. Chapter 43

**And Chapter 43 tis ready. Hope you guys enjoy it. Our friends might be in for a little surprise that could delay their plans just a tad. You'll see...**

**Onward!**

Chapter 43

Sai surveyed the cave that she and her friends were currently inhabiting. It was Koga's den and was, as expected, full of wolves and wolf demons. The scent wasn't pleasant to Sai's nose, but that wasn't what was keeping her awake. Honestly, she didn't know what it was. Obviously, her friends weren't bothered by it. All of them were asleep, even Kaze who had her in his lap. She was the only one awake except for the two wolf demons on watch. All Sai knew is that her body and mind would simply not relax into sleep. She was glad for the fact that she had demon blood and didn't really need sleep all that much. Still, she knew that the next day was not going to be the most fun she'd ever had, to say the least.

A cool breeze blew in through the mouth of the den. With it, it brought the scent of wolves and her friends, but also something else. It brought the scent of evil and corruption. Normally, the scent would have been alarming. However, this time she knew where it was coming from. Sai looked across the cave and examined the sleeping form of the physical, living manifestation of the embodiment of love. He was tied with rope infused with demonic aura, so that only a demon with a more powerful aura could undo it. Evil was pouring off of him, making her shiver. She knew that the evil didn't originate with him, but that didn't stop the hair on the back of her neck from standing on end in apprehension. Her instincts were telling her to rip out his throat and end the danger. It took a good deal of self restraint to not do that. The only thing that was really holding her back was the fact that she knew that they were going to purify the evil tomorrow when all of them were free from the effects of the drugging. That didn't mean, however, that her patience wasn't fraying.

Sai could have attributed her insomnia for the night to this evil presence. The only problem was that she knew that it wasn't what was keeping her up either. It was something else, something much more difficult for her to put her finger on. Sai dislodged herself from Kaze's lap doing her best not to wake him. She was successful, but only because the drugs that they had been given were still in his system. Otherwise, he probably would have felt Sai's inner crisis through his mate mark and never have been able to fall asleep in the first place. However, there was one person connected to her that she couldn't fool.

"I see you're awake." The familiar voice said from behind her. Sai chuckled weakly.

"How long have you been up Koga?" She asked without turning to face him at his elevated sleeping place at the back of the cave.

"I'm a light sleeper." He told her without really answering her question. Sai nodded, understanding that he hadn't been able to sleep either.

"So you sense it too?" Koga asked, his voice seriously. Sai was quiet for a moment as she stared out the mouth of the cave.

"Yeah." She admitted eventually, "But I'm not sure what I sense."

"I didn't expect that you would. You're not a leader of a pack." Koga said plainly, "You're sensing an encroachment or invasion on this territory. Ayame and I picked up on it before we went to sleep." Sai nodded. Now it made sense. That's what had her so on edge and unable to sleep.

"So why am I able to sense it at all?" Sai asked, the question confusing her. Koga chuckled.

"I guess your father never told you." He commented quietly. Sai turned to face him for the first time.

"What are you talking about?" Sai demanded. Koga smirked at her.

"I guess he was ashamed. Hell, I'm ashamed over it, but it was practical." Koga continued, delaying his response. Sai wasn't going to stand for that.

"What are you talking about?" She repeated, her tone growing annoyed.

"Did you think it strange that I knew that you were and danger and knew where to find you?" Koga asked. Sai paused. She had wondered that, but didn't think it important enough to ask. Apparently there was more to it than she had thought.

"There is a reason for it." Koga continued, "You and I are connected. Inuyasha marked me as your godfather. That makes me aware of when I'm needed to come and save you from certain death." Sai nodded. She shouldn't have been surprised to find out that her father had taken such a precaution. Suddenly, the reason that she could sense the breach of Koga's territory was made perfectly clear to her.

"So I can sense it," Sai began, "because I'm technically a member of your family." Koga smiled and nodded.

"Yeah that's about right. It'll only work when you're in my territory, though." Koga added.

"Good. I don't want my senses going haywire every time someone invades you. Then I'll never be able to sleep. I know how much everyone hates you." Sai joked, making Koga laugh.

"You are your father's daughter." Koga commented, "But at least you got your mother's looks."

"And I'm damn proud of both!" Sai said proudly, "Now cut your gawking. I'm your goddaughter and it's weird." Koga's eyes widened.

"Damn. I never thought about it that way." He said, scratching his head. Sai laughed.

"I can see that." She joked before her face became serious, "So how long do we have before whatever is in your territory is here? Whatever it is, it isn't small." Koga nodded his agreement.

"No. It's damn big and powerful too." He told her, "My guess is that they'll be here by morning." Sai's brow furrowed in confusion.

"They?" She asked, "There's more than one?" Koga nodded.

"Yeah. It's hard for you to tell, I know. You're not used to doing it and can't differentiate between one and thousands." He said, "There's a whole damn army coming at us. Whoever is leading them is powerful too. The aura is familiar, but I can't place it."

"Think we can handle it?" Sai asked. Koga chuckled.

"Under normal circumstances, hell no. We'd be killed pretty damn quickly, even with the panthers fighting with us." Koga admitted, "Thing is, if even half of the rumors I've heard about you are true, then we'll be fine." Sai blushed slightly at the praise.

"What have you heard?" She asked shyly, hoping that it hadn't been exaggerated too much.

"Well for one, I heard that you took out a thousand demons in one strike." Koga said smirking. Sai's eyes widened. The rumors hadn't been exaggerated. They'd been understated. Sai smirked right back at Koga.

"It was more like a couple thousand." Sai told him truthfully. Koga's eyes widened. He knew she was telling the truth since he couldn't smell any deceit on her.

"It wasn't my smartest move ever, though." She admitted, "There were still a couple thousand left when after that and I only got though a couple hundred before I passed out." It took Koga a while before he could respond in any way, but when he finally did, he was laughing.

"Damn, you kill more demons than I have in my entire life in one strike and you're still not satisfied. You're a tough girl to please." Koga joked. Despite Sai's embarrassment at the praise, she couldn't help but laugh. It was funny and ironic, but it wasn't lost on her that the Alpha Male of the wolf demons had just acknowledged that a female half dog demon was more powerful than he was. It took Koga a moment before he stopped laughing.

"You should get some sleep alright." He advised, "You're going to need it." Sai nodded. If there was going to be a battle the next day, even Sai would need her sleep.

Without saying another word, the two parted and walked back to where their mates were sleeping. Sai saw Koga slip in beside Ayame and saw their bodies mold together. It was cute and Sai could see easily how perfect they were for each other. Sai turned to her own mate who was still sound asleep against the wall of the cave. Kaze was sound asleep and showed no signs of even knowing she was gone. She smiled and snuggled back into his lap. Kaze immediately brought his arms around her and nuzzled his face into her neck. Sai smiled. She knew how perfect they were together. Even in his sleep, Kaze knew how to make her feel loved. This time, she fell asleep in minutes and would stay that way until morning.

A young girl, clad in red, stared off into the night sky from her place on her horse. The stars twinkled and the cool night air tickled her face. What remained of the child in her longed to be able to stare at these stars forever and to lay on a hillside bathed in their light. However, there was very little of the little girl that she had been. That part of her hadn't defined her for years and she wouldn't ever let it define her again. She had moved past childish things. Her short fifteen years of life had taught her that nothing was as innocent or perfect as childhood led you to believe. To children, the night was magical. However, this girl knew that the night was only a shroud to hide the evil in the world while it did its work. After all, her parents had been killed under the same stars that twinkled so beautifully in the sky above her now.

"Milady." Came a voice that wrenched her from her thoughts causing her to turn to face the sound that had disturbed her. Her eyes were met with the sight of another man on a horse.

"What?" She demanded, irritation making her voice threatening. She saw the man gulp, much to her pleasure.

"Milady," He began again hesitantly, "We will reach their hiding place by morning." The girl's eyes flashed blood red in murderous delight, causing the much older man riding behind her to shudder in fear.

"Good." She whispered to herself before raising her voice to talk to the man, "Make sure we are ready to attack when we get there. I want you to kill all of them, all of them except for the girl. She is my prize." The man nodded.

"Milady, what about their prisoner? Should he die as well?" He asked. The girl thought for a moment. She had orders to take the prisoner alive. It wouldn't do well for her if he were to die in the attack, but it also wouldn't be terrible either.

"Hmph. If he fights, kill him. If not, take him alive." The girl commanded.

"Yes milady." The man said, bowing his head. With that, turned his horse around and galloped back to inform the other commanders within this large army that was following behind her.

The girl looked forward into the night. She could now sense the presence and power of the girl that she was here to kill. It was pure and exceedingly large. So was that of each of her companions. The girl smirked to herself.

"Bitch, if you're going to kill someone like me," She whispered into the darkness, "then you're going to have to try a whole hell of a lot harder than that. Now we'll see who is really more powerful you mangy half-breed bitch. I think we both know the answer to that already, though. You're going to die."

The sun arose a few hours later. It greeted a den full of demons that were already up and preparing for battle. The panthers had already arrived and were awaiting to be joined by the wolves. Meanwhile, Sai and her friends along with Koga and Ayame were going over battle plans. It was now clear to anyone with a sensitive nose how large the force that was coming at them was. What wasn't clear was what that force was made up of exactly. At first glance, scent was human, but both Sai and Kaze could smell the distinctive scent of a concealment spell. It was obvious that this army had someone with them that was disguising and hiding the scent of something. The only question was what that something was. The answer, however, didn't matter to Koga. He was determined to be prepared for anything. Even if the legions of hell were marching on his den, Koga would be damned if he let them defeat him and his tribe.

"Koga," Ayame said after hearing Koga rant on about the upcoming battle for the third time that morning, "I think we get it. You and I along with Sai and her friends will lead the attack. Sai will break off to fight whoever is leading this army once he shows himself. Then, once that's taken care of, we have our armies charge into the fray. We've got it covered." Everyone else gathered around Koga nodded their agreement.

"She's right." Kaze agreed from his position sitting and examining his thus yet virgin blade, "These bastards won't get anywhere near these caves or your pup."

"And whoever the hell is leading this army will learn not to mess with me or my family." Sai added. Koga nodded.

"Right. It's just that no wolf demon tribe has ever faced an enemy this large." He said, trying to justify himself.

"Hey."Akage interjected, "Just remember that it won't only be wolf demons fighting."

"Yeah." Nami agreed, "We'll be there too."

"It's not like this is our first battle." Umi added causing Kirara to mew her agreement to that statement since she was the oldest being there. Koga nodded. His worries still were not completely assuaged, but he dismissed everyone anyway.

Sai and Kaze left the others behind after having been dismissed. They jumped from the cave den and landed gracefully a few hundred feet below.

"Damn, I'll never get used to being able to do that." Kaze commented, laughing to himself as his exposed fangs glinted in the morning sunlight. Sai laughed along with him.

"Give it a hundred years. You'll be fine with it by then." She joked.

"I gotta get used to living that long first. I mean, you've only got a couple more years of aging normally until you're like that permanently. For me, I'm essentially going to look like this for the rest of eternity." Kaze said, thinking about the implications of that.

"Is that such a bad thing?" Sai asked, "Being young forever?" Kaze smiled at her.

"No. If it means getting to be with your beautiful self forever, I think I'll be alright." He told her, "I was just thinking about my parents and my sisters." Sai frowned. She knew that this was going to come up eventually.

"Well, your sisters will be fine. They have enough spiritual energy to keep them permanently like they are. Plus, Nami is going to be mated to Akage soon enough. With that connection, she'll live as long as he does." Sai explained, "As for your parents, I don't know. It's likely that they'll live longer than most humans, but I don't know how long exactly. I guess that it's possible that your now demonic connection to them might sustain them to live as long as you do, but that's purely hypothetical." Kaze nodded before smiling at his mate.

"I guess we'll have to see, eh?" He said cheerily. Sai nodded, returning his smile. It impressed her how well he took the information that had just been given to him on how unlikely it was that his parents would live indefinitely.

"Yeah." She said after a moment, "I guess we will."

"But we have a few more pressing matters at the moment." He said, sniffing the air, "That army is only a couple hours away." Sai sniffed the air to confirm his statement.

"You're right. Hopefully the wolves will be ready by then." Sai told him, knowing that Koga would have his men ready and in line with the panthers long before this opposing army arrived. With that, the two of them turned back towards the caves and set off at a run back to them in order to make their final preparations. They expecting that this was going to be one interesting battle to say the least.

Two hours later, as expected, Koga's army was assembled next to that of the panthers. The Panther Devas were easy to see leading their forces. Meanwhile, Koga and Ayame stood with Sai and the others in front of the wolves. They could see the opposing army in the distance. Calvary led the army with infantry in line behind them. In all, Sai estimated that the army numbered around 2000 men. Everything indicated that this was a normal human army except for one thing. She couldn't make out a leader anywhere. These soldiers seemed to just be marching on their own without any sort of general leading them. That was extremely unusual. The concealment spell was also still in place, though Sai could not sense its origin or what it was meant to hide. Obviously it had been cast by someone very powerful.

"It's time." Koga said calmly, "Let's head out." All of them nodded. Nami and Umi hopped on Kirara and then the eight of them set off for the point midway between the two armies. The Panther Devas saw the movement and ran to join them.

When the other army saw the leaders start to move they stopped moving and calmly stood facing forward. The soldiers stared blankly as the twelve gathered in the middle of the field.

"You guys see any leaders?" Toran asked, obviously having noticed what Sai had been wondering about earlier. Koga shook his head.

"No. I only see soldiers. Hell, I don't even see unit leaders. The only thing that breaks the ranks of soldiers is the occasional solid red banner." He complained, "What the hell is up with this?"

"There's magic in the air." Shunran stated, "A lot of it."

"We know." Sai said, "It's a concealment spell. Something tells me that this is no ordinary human army."

"Well if their leader isn't going to meet us in the field, then what should we do?" Karan asked.

"I think that's pretty obvious." Kaze said smirking.

"We attack." Akage finished. Toran and Koga both nodded at this assertion.

"So how long do we give them? It's obvious those soldiers are waiting for something." Sai pointed out.

"I say we attack now." Nami put forth, "Hit them fast and hard without giving them any more time."

"It would give us an upper hand. We could cause a lot of chaos before whatever they're concealing can even think about fighting back." Umi added.

"Whatever we do, we can't wait long." Ayame said, "We need to end this battle." Koga nodded his agreement.

"We'll give them another minute for their leader to get out here. If he doesn't show, we kill them all." He decided. That's when they heard the laughter of a young girl coming, not from the opposing army, but from above them. They all looked up and watched as a flash of red sped down to the ground, landing impossibly gently for how fast it had approached the earth.

"I guess it's a good thing I couldn't wait another minute." The girl said, lifting her face to be seen by the twelve arrayed before her. The sight that met them made them all pale. Sai and Kaze both began to growl menacingly at the sight. The girl laughed.

"You act as though you've seen a ghost." She joked threateningly. Sai narrowed her eyes and bared her fangs wider while her growl intensified.

"The Red Sorceress, Haruka." She said, venom dripping from her words.

"That's right bitch." She affirmed, smirking, "Now prepare to die."

**And you guys thought she was dead! Psssh! She was only mostly dead. Who dies from having their heart ripped out of their chest? It's completely unheard of! Battle coming up next time. And who knows? We might even get to see Kaze use that sword of his for the first time... Guess we'll just have to see. Anyway, please REVIEW! I promise that it helps me out. Until next time guys!**


	44. Chapter 44

**Hey everybody! Battle is up and I'd say it's decent at least. Haven't edited it, but you know... whatever... Anyway, got some reviews the other day that pointed out some complaints that my readers have. I would have answered them here, but that would have inflated the word count more than I'm comfortable with, so I put my responses into a review of my own. I think that it should take care of most of them, but if anybody has more, I'd be glad to see if I can try and scramble to defend my mistakes and keep some semblance of my pride :). So don't be afraid to REVIEW!**

**Now enough of that! To the battlefield!**

Chapter 44:

"DAMMIT! GET DOWN!" Sai screamed to her friends. All of them hit the ground just in time to avoid being sent to oblivion by Haruka's blast of red magic. As soon as the attack passed over them, they scrambled to get into fighting positions. Sai and Kaze drew their swords, while the others steeled themselves to battle.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk..." Haruka complained, "You know I can't let you do that. Saiai will be my only opponent."

"WHAT?!" Kaze screamed, his rage boiling over and his eyes twinging with red, "NO WAY IN HELL!" Kaze's intense rage would have had any other being quaking at his feet. However, Haruka's smirking face was unfazed.

"You just don't get it do you." She said calmly. The demons gathered all growled collectively, creating a terrifying rumble.

"And what the hell is going to stop me from ripping your throat out?" Koga demanded. Haruka chuckled and turned to face the army behind her.

"From what I know," She said, still facing away from them, "You all value human life for some reason. It disgusts me, but I will use it to my advantage. If anyone other than Sai joins in this duel, they will all die."

"YOU BITCH!" Sai roared, her grip on her swords becoming inhumanly strong. Haruka didn't respond or even turn back to face them. She simply walked forward towards her army a few paces before turning around.

"Think it over hmm." She told them with a smirk, "I'll be waiting." With that, the Red Sorceress vanished. Sai could still smell her, so she knew that she was still around, but no one could pinpoint where.

"We can't let you fight alone!" Kaze insisted immediately.

"Yeah. There's no way we're going to let you die out here." Nami agreed. Sai shook her head.

"No." She told them firmly, "I've killed her once, I can do it again."

"Dammit Sai!" Umi cursed, "You won that because your demon blood took over. And if you haven't noticed, the bitch is hard to kill. You tore her heart out and she's still alive."

"Umi's right." Akage agreed, "Plus, she knows how you fight now. I know for a fact that you don't remember your battle, so you'll be fighting blind compared to her."

"I'm not going to let my goddaughter die." Ayame chimed in, "Especially when I just figured out that I had one." Sai growled loudly, signalling everyone to shut up and listen.

"I know that. I know all of that." Sai said, her frustration straining her voice, "But I won't let them die. I can't."

"And why the hell not?" Koga demanded, "They've chosen to fight against us, so why can't we let them die?"

"Because," Kaze interjected weakly, sheathing his sword, "Sai's conscience won't let her. She's too pure for that. It would destroy her if she was the cause of their death. She'd probably never fight again. More than that, she more than likely wouldn't have the will to live herself anymore. That's why we have to let her do this alone. We have to believe that she can do it and that she can win." Sai's jaw dropped at these words. Kaze was absolutely right. His depth of understanding made Sai overflow with love for him.

"Kaze..." Was all she managed to say before words failed her. Sai's hands lost their strength and her swords dropped to the ground. The others saw this and immediately knew that Kaze was right about everything.

"Dammit!" Koga cursed, "Fine, I'll let you fight alone, but you better kill this bitch." Sai simply nodded. At this, everyone but Kaze took off without another word. Kaze walked to his mate and took her into his arms.

"You be careful alright." He told her, the emotion in his voice following the wetness in his eyes. Sai pulled him closer and let the tears fall, but nodded.

"I will." She assured him, though she didn't sound so confident. Kaze nodded, understanding her words and finally letting his own tears stain Sai's kimono.

"I love you Sai. I love you so much." He choked out, nuzzling her neck.

"I love you too Kaze, more than you could ever know." She said, holding onto him as though her life depended on it. Kaze growled low, saying more than words ever could.

The two broke away and memorized each other's features one last time. With that done and no more words left to say, Kaze turned back to where the others had gone and followed them. Sai, however, looked to the sky and sighed. She dried her tears and retrieved her blades. They felt right in her hands. She twirled the swords as more of a comforting motion than anything else before challenging her opponent.

"Haruka!" Sai called out, "I think we've waited long enough." Without another wasted second, the Red Sorceress appeared several paces in front of Sai. Her smirk was still perfectly intact, much to Sai's annoyance.

"Finally! I thought you would never be ready." The girl complained, "Your little love fest was touching, really, but not to me. I found it revolting. Love is for the weak and those with nothing better to live for." Sai scowled, baring her fangs and emitting a menacing growl.

"After I'm done with you," Sai breathed, her anger barely contained, "you won't be living for anything." Haruka snorted.

"Let's see you back up those words." She taunted.

"Gladly!" Sai yelled raising her blades in a large X, "DRAGON RIFT!" The green rays of light sped out of the blades, swirling and twisting around themselves as they went. Haruka barely had time to raise a barrier before the attack hit. The earth around her was completely destroyed. Once the dust settled, Haruka had a three foot deep and 10 foot wide trench on both sides of her. However, her shimmering red barrier left her and her smirk untouched.

"My my Saiai." The girl said laughing, "That old trick isn't going to get you anywhere." Sai growled threateningly.

"Bitch." She muttered under her breath. Haruka feigned a look of being hurt.

"Such language! Well, if you can't control your mouth, then I guess I'm going to have to keep it shut for you!" She mocked letting down the barrier. Sai tried to use this to her advantage and attack, however Haruka did not intend for this to happen. The young sorceress fired off a blade of red magic. It would have hit any human square in the chest, but Sai used her demon speed to get out of the way, barely. This gave Sai an idea.

"DRAGON SCAR!" She roared, using Jikan's influence over time to try and slow it down enough for her to make an opening. The problem was that Haruka didn't seem to be affected at all. She easily deflected the attack and time seemed normal around her, though it was moving at a much slower pace around the two of them. Sai was in utter disbelief which Haruka picked up on immediately.

"Surprised Sai?" She asked tauntingly, "You shouldn't be. I'm a sorceress in case you forgot." Sai cursed herself. Of course it hadn't worked. Sorceresses aren't affected by time at all, while even demons are subject to its withering effects on an extremely long term scale. Sai hadn't thought about that. Haruka saw everything click firmly into place on Sai's face and burst into laughter.

"Don't you see you silly girl? You cannot win!" Haruka yelled, "I am not affected by your control over time and I am most certainly not going to be affected by your control over matter. I win, you lose. Accept your death now and I'll only tear your heart out. Just for revenge and all that. I'm sure you understand."

"Burn in hell." Sai spat. With that, she released the magic slowing time and sped forward with her blades raised. Haruka rolled her eyes, but quickly created her own blades and blocked Sai's attack with masterful ease.

"Please." She said, sounding as though this were a mere annoyance, "Not this again. You may have bested me last time, but you underestimate how fast I learn. I know how you fight and how to counter it. Magic has its benefits you know." Sai's growl intensified as her eyes became twinged with red, though her irises remained golden, and purple demon markings appeared on her face.

"Don't make me say it again." She growled out, bloodlust dripping from every word. Before even she knew what was happening, Sai was moving again faster than any half demon should have been able to move. Her blades met Haruka's causing demonic steel to clang loudly off of magically created steel. The sheer brute force behind Sai's attack was enough to send Haruka peddling back on her heels.

"Now block this bitch!" Sai roared as she fired off a Dragon Wave at the Red Sorceress. The intensity was enough to crack Haruka's hastily made barrier, but nothing more. She smirked haughtily at Sai.

"What was that Sai?" She taunted as Sai panted across from her, "Oh did that take a little too much out of you? Do you need a break? Hmph! Sleep when you're dead half-breed!"

With that, Haruka took off into the air and began to levitate several feet above Sai's head. Her hysterical laughter grated on Sai's ears and her nerves, but there was nothing she could do about it. Haruka had her completely outclassed. None of her attacks had any effect. She was too powerful for her blunt force and too skilled for her demonic attacks. Neither time alteration nor spiritual energy had much effect on the girl. The only thing that prevented her from giving up and accepting death right then and there was her extensive and unshakeable pride. She had her father to thank for that one.

Sai's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the air sparking. She looked up at the source of the sound and saw the deathly red glow surrounding Haruka. The color was deepest around her hands, where it was the color of blood. It was obvious that the magic that she had built up was intense and would kill anything it touched instantly, even Sai.

"When you stop contemplating your death, let me know so I can give it to you!" The girl called from above. Sai scowled up at her and bared her fangs.

"Speak for yourself bitch!" She yelled back, "Come down here and I'll tear your heart out again!" Haruka smirked.

"Hmph! You're gonna have to do a lot more than that to kill me!" She taunted, "But for now, I wanna see you dance!" Haruka immediately began to rain down spikes of her red magic. It was as she had done in the last battle, though this time, more magic was infused into each one. Sai was having a hard enough time of dodging the spears, let alone the resulting explosions. It wasn't long before she was knocked from her feet and started to get knocked around through the air by the blasts. Haruka was obviously doing it for her own enjoyment. At this point, she could easily have killed her. After another minute of the abuse, Haruka let Sai crash into the Earth and create yet another crater among the many that now littered the field. She was on the edge between consciousness and the bliss of leaving this world behind. Sai wasn't going to last much longer and every single person on the battlefield knew it.

Kaze watched from the front of Koga's army as his mate was thrown around like a ragdoll by a little girl. He knew that Sai was fighting as hard as she could, but she was completely outclassed. None of her attacks had any effect. She had tried everything. Haruka had blocked Sai's Dragon Wave and Dragon Rift, fended off her swords in direct combat, was completely unaffected by Dragon Scar, and could resist spiritual attacks. The Red Sorceress was essentially invincible and unbeatable to Sai.

The pain in Kaze's heart was intense. It wasn't only because mate was in pain and on the verge of death. It was because he was responsible for making her face it alone. He had made everyone back off in helping her. His voice had been the deciding factor. Kaze would never be able to live with that. However, he also couldn't help. He knew that Sai would never be able to live with herself if the humans died because of her. Kaze could only lose in this situation and it was frustrating him to no end. His demon blood and human blood were coming to a boil simultaneously. It was all he could do to silence the voice in his head screaming at him to protect his mate.

Suddenly, the explosions stopped. Kaze's eyes were immediately drawn to Sai's limp form as she dropped from the sky and crashed into the earth. The force with which she slammed into it created another crater in the destroyed ground. Haruka followed her to the ground, but came down much slower and landed gently on her feet. Kaze scowled as his eyes went red. The wind picked up, clearing the dust and blowing into Kaze's face. However, heavy on the wind was a scent that Kaze hadn't expected. The scent of demons under the scent of expired magic was thick. Then it clicked. That was the concealment spell. It had covered up the scent of demons and replaced it with human scent, which was now gone completely. Kaze stared at the army across the field from him. They still appeared human, but now Kaze was sure that this was a deception. Each and every one of them was a demon. Kaze's rage finally overwhelmed him. He took a firm hold of the sword on his back and began to draw it. The blade was halfway out when a single thought gave him pause. There was nothing he could do. If Sai couldn't even land a hit a this sorceress, then what could he do? He was useless and could do nothing to save his mate from the horror of death.

"Trust your blade." A voice said in his mind, echoing loudly and permeating every aspect of his thoughts.

"What? Who are you?" Kaze asked mentally.

"Trust your blade." The voice repeated again. Kaze recognized the voice that had invaded his head. It belonged to the man sitting tied up in Koga's den. It belonged to the embodiment of love. He quickly complied. If the embodiment was telling him to trust his sword, then he was going to do it. No one needed to tell him again to save his mate.

Kaze drew his blade and sprinted forward onto the battlefield. He heard the gasps of his friends, but knew that they would be too surprised to try and stop him. The demon blood flowing through his veins took over his body, but his human half retained firm control over his mind. This didn't, however, mean that he wasn't irrational and violent. He wasn't consciously keeping his humanity in control. Instead, his demon blood knew that his humanity was just as pissed as it was and could deal out the same amount of violence.

It was mere seconds before Kaze reached the center of the battlefield. Haruka didn't even spare the time to give Kaze a glance. She raised her palm to him and fired off a massive blast of her red magic. Kaze didn't even flinch. He raised his blade and sliced right through the wall of power without it ever touching him. This got Haruka's attention. Her head snapped around and, in a moment of panic, she sent a spear of magic into the ground in Kaze's path. The explosion stopped him in his tracks.

"I thought I told you not to interfere!" Haruka spat venomously. Kaze smirked, his elongated fangs glinting in the sun.

"I'm not good at following directions." He said, his voice a growl.

"Hmph! Well then, you leave me no choice." She told him, "All of these humans now must die. I hope you will enjoy your mate's hatred as you die together." Kaze's eyes flicked over to where Sai was laying. She was beaten and battered, but still hanging on to consciousness. Her eyes were confused and sad. Kaze gave her a reassuring nod before turning back to Haruka. Then, much to both girls' surprise, he began to laugh.

"Do you think I'm stupid?" He accused causing Haruka to flinch, "Or do you think my nose is faulty? Those soldiers aren't human."

"Kaze?" Sai pleaded weakly, her voice barely a whisper.

"Shhh, Sai, shhh. Smell it if you can." He said gently before putting his attention back of the sorceress, "Your concealment spell expired." Haruka's eyes widened in astonishment before narrowing in rage. The aura around her became a violent red.

"I'll kill you." She breathed threateningly, "You and your mate." Kaze smirked.

"Go ahead and try it bitch." He taunted, "Your magic won't touch me." Haruka scowled and quickly focused her magic in her hands before launching twin blasts of it at Kaze. He immediately began to spin the blade in front of him. As soon as the magic hit the spinning blade, it was dissipated and became nothing.

"Told ya bitch." He said, stilling his blade, "Now it's my turn. BLOOD SCAR!" Kaze slashed the blade downwards in front of his body. Blood red energy rushed out of the blade in two distinct streams. They cut gouges into the earth as they rushed towards Haruka. The sorceress put up a barrier of red magic. However, it did nothing to stop the oncoming assault of power. The barrier was ripped to shreds and didn't even slow down the Blood Scar. Haruka's eyes widened in utter terror as she realized that she couldn't stop it. The twin streaks of energy slammed into Haruka's body and began to consume it. The sorceress screamed out in agony as her body was quickly eaten up by the red power, while Jinsei, Kaze's blade, absorbed everything.

It felt like the screams lasted for hours as Haruka died. In reality, it was less than a minute, but they were so high pitched, loud, and full of pain and anguish that they could have brought even a hardened warrior to his knees. Those on the battlefield that day, however, were unfazed. They knew how detestable the girl was and felt no sorrow for her passing. Instead, all of them looked on in amazement at the man who had so easily brought down the Red Sorceress. Kaze, however, took no time to revel in his victory. He sheathed his sword and ran to the side of his mate.

"Sai! Sai! Talk to me!" He begged, dropping to his knees beside her, "Are you alright? Please say something!" Kaze's voice was desperate. His full demon features were gone, so his tears fell from normal eyes down a clear face. Sai slowly looked up at her mate and smiled weakly.

"That was... amazing." She breathed, though it was clearly labored. Kaze breathed out in relief and took her into his arms.

"Don't worry about that." Kaze told her, "You just focus on yourself right now. I need you." Sai nodded weakly, before closing her eyes. Kaze knew through his mark that she was alive, but was still frantic with worry that she had passed out and about her condition in general.

"Kaze!" He heard Koga yell from behind him, "Is Sai alright?" He nodded his head without facing them, knowing that they would see. They reached him seconds later and gathered around the two. Ayame stepped forward.

"Kaze," She began, addressing him while reaching for Sai, "Let me see her." Kaze immediately pulled his mate tighter to himself and growled at the female wolf demon. Ayame, knowing that this defensive instinct was going to take over, had a response prepared.

"I'm a den mother." She assured him, "I can take care of her, make her better." Kaze's growl stopped as reason entered his mind once again. Eventually, he nodded and handed his mate over to Ayame. The den mother nodded and took the girl gently into her arms and stood up. Everyone stood up.

"Ayame, get her to the den." Koga commanded, "Now. We've still got a battle to fight." Ayame nodded and sped off. Kaze turned to Koga and gave him a confused look.

"What are you talking about?" He asked the tribe leader. Instead of answering, Koga raised his finger and pointed to the army of demons that were no longer disguised as humans. Kaze immediately realized that Koga was right. There was still an army of 2000 demons on their doorstep and they looked angry and ready for blood. Kaze nodded and drew his sword.

"Let me take care of this." Kaze said calmly. All of the others looked at him as if he were crazy, making him smirk, "Totosai said that this blade absorbs the energy of those that it slays. Well, I just slew a sorceress that tossed the most powerful priestess and half-demon in the world around like she was nothing. I think that it has enough power to take out these lesser demons." Koga smiled and turned to the Panther Devas.

"You guys think your panthers would mind if the dog takes these guys out?" He asked jokingly. Toran smirked.

"I think they can deal with not dying for a little while, at least." She assured him. Koga chuckled.

"I think I can say the same for my wolves." He said, turning back to Kaze, "They're all yours kid. Have fun." Kaze nodded and drew Jinsei. He walked out of the group and approached the opposing army of demons.

Kaze stood and stared at the demons for a few moments. They were hesitating out of fear. All of them had seen this same kid kill their leader easily and weren't sure if they could take him. Eventually, though, pride overwhelmed fear and they charged. Kaze smirked and raised Jinsei above his head. He began to spin the blade through the air creating a swirling black mass of wind that raged above the spinning blade. When it reached the size that Kaze wanted, he stopped the blade and slashed it downwards in one fluid motion.

"REAPER'S BREATH!" He roared, sending the black wind raging into the ranks of demons. As soon as the air hit them, the demons began to fall to the ground dead. Jinsei began to pulse as it devoured their life force. Not a single demon got anywhere near where Kaze was standing. Instead, there were about 2000 shriveled and dissolving bodies of demons arrayed in front of his calm and collected form.

Without a single word, Kaze sheathed his blade and turned away from the battlefield. The time for battle was over. Now he had to be with his mate. He took off at a sprint towards the den where Ayame had taken her. She needed him and he needed her. Kaze was determined to make sure that she was okay.

**Hope you guys liked that! And see... I told you guys that Sai wasn't overpowered to the extent of being unbeatable. She got roughed up pretty bad there. She ain't unbeatable, I swear! Kaze on the other hand... He can suck the life out of your body... That's creepy as hell and is normally a bad guy power, but hey, now it's a good thing! Yay! Anyway, hope you guys liked it and would love to hear your thoughts, so... REVIEW! Love you guys!**


	45. Chapter 45

**Yeah I know this is really late. I'd blame writer's block, but that would be a lie... I got over that pretty quickly... No, really it was just me being lazy and wanting to do nothing, but chill. Oh well... The chapter is here now and I hope you guys like it. Should answer a few questions if any of you have any. If it doesn't answer yours, feel free to ask me and I'll see what I can do. Now enough of me...**

**Onwards!**

Chapter 45

Kiretsu and Mageru looked on from a distant hill at the destroyed battlefield. The wolf and panther demon forces were untouched and still maintained perfectly formed ranks. However, the same could not be said for the army that had stood against them. All that was left there was a disorganized mass of bones, weapons, and armor. The center of the battlefield itself was in no better condition than the army that had hoped to overrun it. It was a sight of utter destruction. Massive craters littered the area and upturned, bare earth was thrown everywhere.

"Impressive." Mageru commented as he watched Kaze sprint towards the cave where the female wolf demon had taken Saiai.

"Indeed." Kiretsu agreed, nodding his head.

"There is only one thing that confuses me about this whole affair." Mageru said, massaging his temples.

"What is that brother?" Kiretsu asked, turning to face the demon beside him.

"Kaze is strong. He is extremely strong. That is undeniable. However, Saiai is much more powerful than her mate. Yet, in that battle with the sorceress, Saiai was tossed about as though she were nothing, while Kaze ended her with one strike." Mageru said, recounting the battle, "How is that possible?" Kiretsu nodded, understanding his dilemma. He had indeed held the same question during the battle. The answer had only come to him recently.

"Think about it brother." Kiretsu began, "Sorceress are immune to time, while even demons will eventually feel its effects. We, out of anyone, should know this fact. This means that Saiai could not use Jikan to wrench her out of it. In addition, this sorceress was very powerful. Combine this with the fact the magic is very resistant attacks based around matter or brute force. That means that Mondai and her masterful swordsmanship were worthless in this battle. From their last battle we learned that spiritual energy had little effect on Haruka, so that removed Saiai's last hope for victory. In short, Haruka was the worst possible opponent for her to face alone. She only won their first encounter because Haruka did not anticipate the sheer amount of power that Saiai did possess. Haruka was much better prepared for the second battle." Mageru nodded, taking in the information and processing it's implications.

"What you say makes sense brother." He admitted, "However, that still leaves one problem. Why was Kaze able to defeat her so easily?"

"The reason behind that lies within the nature of Kaze's blade." Kiretsu told him, "Just as Saiai could not harm Haruka because her blades were not suited to the battle, Kaze was able to end her because his blade is uniquely suited to destroying enemies that Saiai cannot. His sword, Jinsei, attacks life itself. Haruka had no defense against this. Few beings do. That is why Kaze was able to destroy her with such ease. In addition, Kaze's blade seems to be vampiric in nature. It absorbed the power of slain as they died. The energy taken from Haruka allowed him to kill the army of demons lying before us now." Mageru began to laugh. The idea was madness, but it was the only thing that made sense.

"So in other words, Saiai and Kaze may as well be invincible. It seems as though nothing can beat them." He pointed out. Kiretsu smiled.

"It would seem that way." He affirmed, "Though it is not completely true. There are still enemies that could end them easily. Konton is one of them. Given the fact that, at the moment, he cannot die." Mageru frowned, but nodded.

"And it will be awhile before the embodiment can be purified now that Saiai is so terribly injured." He pointed out, "She will need to recover before they can move on." Kiretsu nodded and looked out onto the horizon.

"True enough." He said calmly, "But I believe that they will still succeed. They've made it this far. We must believe that they can succeed. If they don't, everyone we loved died for nothing. I cannot believe that. No, they will succeed and Konton shall die." Mageru looked at his brother. In his eyes, there was a fire that hadn't been there in a very long time. If these kids could bring that back then maybe, just maybe, they really would succeed. Without another word, the two brother time demons disappeared from the hill.

Kaze burst into the cave that Ayame had taken Sai into. Wolves were everywhere, though few of the demons themselves had returned yet. This made both women's scent easier to detect. It only took a few seconds for Kaze to identify them at the back of the cave and rush to his mate's side. Now that the rush and fog of battle was gone, he could make out the extent of Sai's injuries. They were far worse than he had gathered, though, her armor-like kimono had done its job. Most of the injuries were from blunt force due to the blasts that had tossed her through the air. All that meant, however, was that instead of bleeding out externally, she likely had extensive internal bleeding and more than a few broken bones. Kaze dropped to his knees and brushed his hand lightly across her still unconscious face.

"Is... Is she gonna be alright?" He choked out. Ayame didn't look at him, but continued her examination of Sai.

"She'll live." The den mother answered cryptically.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Kaze demanded desperately, "Be honest with me!" Ayame had to stop herself from yelling back. She knew that Kaze was only acting this way because he loved his mate. In all honesty, she knew that she would have been acting the same way if it were Koga that had been injured. That didn't mean, however, that she wasn't thoroughly annoyed.

"Look," She said flatly, "I need to focus and concentrate in order to examine her. I'm used to wolf demons, not dog demons and especially not half-dog demons. All I know is that most of her ribs are broken and so is her left arm. I'm not sure how bad the internal bleeding is, but I do know that it's not bad enough that she's in any immediate danger. Now go sit down somewhere and let me work!" Kaze gritted his teeth and forced himself not to growl at the woman. He had to remind himself that she was helping his mate, not hurting her. It still hurt his pride, though, that he could do nothing to help her. All he was good for now was sitting and watching while someone else took care of her.

Kaze found a seat along the cave wall only a few feet from where Ayame had laid Sai down to perform her work. He placed his sword against it and then sat down on the ground himself. The wall was rough, cold, and damp, but these facts barely even registered in Kaze's mind. His focus was on the woman passed out in front of him. Every movement that she made was instantly captured and committed to memory by his keen eyes. The constant rise and fall of her chest was all that kept him going at this point. Thoughts of that comforting motion stopping tore Kaze's heart to shreds.

A few hours later, the sun was beginning to set. Almost all of the wolves were back in the den except for a few that were cleaning up the battlefield and on watch, but Kaze barely noticed their presence. That is, except for when one of them got too close to his mate. Ayame had even finished her examination of Sai and done what she could in terms of treatment. That was mostly the application herbs and salves that had been fashioned and enhanced by demons and extensive use of bandages. It was, however, all professionally and masterfully done. If he had time to be, Kaze would have been impressed. Instead, every bit of space in his brain was taken up by thoughts of his mate.

Suddenly, the object of his devotion let out a slight moan. Anyone, even with demon ears, that hadn't been attuned so intently to everything she did wouldn't have noticed, but to Kaze's ears, it was like a crack of thunder. Before he could process what he was doing, he was by her side and nuzzling his face into her neck while licking it lightly in an effort to comfort her. Sai moaned again, louder this time, signalling that she was indeed finally coming to. It took a few moments for her eyes to finally slowly crack open, but when they did, Kaze's own were there to greet her.

"Kaze?" She struggled out, her voice weak. Kaze nodded.

"I'm right here." He assured her, "I never left." Sai smiled as best she could in her weakened state and nodded her understanding.

"Didn't figure you would." She jested, her voice barely loud enough to hear, "Kaze you're the bes-" Before she could finish her statement she began to cough horribly. It was rough, labored, and clearly painful. Kaze held her as tightly as he could without hurting her any more and tried to soothe her through it. When the fit finally calmed and she could bring her hands away from her mouth, they were covered in a thin film of blood.

"Damn." She cursed weakly, the blood leaking from the corner of her mouth..

"Don't try to talk anymore." Kaze told her firmly yet gently, "Just rest." Sai frowned, but nodded. All she wanted was to talk with her mate. She wanted, no needed, the comfort, but also knew now that it probably wasn't a good idea. Kaze could tell this much through their connection and decided to try the next best thing. He pulled Sai up, being careful to favor her ribs and left side, and pulled her into his lap. Sai immediately nuzzled herself into Kaze's well-muscled body and allowed herself to relax.

"Thank you." She whispered into his chest. Kaze didn't answer, but dropped his head down to kiss the top of hers. He stayed there, his face engulfed in her hair, and allowed her scent to comfort him, just as it always did. It wasn't long before they were both sound asleep.

Ayame walked to the area where she had set Sai down to recover. The sun had just disappeared behind the horizon, allowing night to take over the sky. With that darkness, most of her pack, including her mate, was heading to bed. She fully intended to go to sleep as well, but she had to check on her goddaughter first. At the moment, she was Ayame's number one priority. That made it all the more worrisome and confusing when she was not laying on the fur pelt that Ayame had laid her on hours before, though her scent still remained in the area. The mystery of her location didn't last long, however. All she had to do was look to where Kaze's scent was and it was solved. The sight warmed her heart. Both of them had a look of utter peace on their faces. Not to mention the fact of how cute it was that Sai was curled up in Kaze's lap with her face buried in his chest and hair in disarray. It was extremely hard, in that moment, for Ayame to believe that she was looking at two of the most powerful people that she had ever met.

With one last look, Ayame turned and headed for the warmth of her own bed alongside her own mate. All thoughts of tending to Sai one last time before going to sleep were gone. There was no way that she could bring herself to interrupt what she had seen there. Instead, she slid into bed beside the still awake Koga and did a little cuddling of her own.

The next morning, the sun greeted two sleeping half-demons and three very amused friends. The three awake ones, that were doing their best to stifle laughter, exchanged looks.

"Should we wake them?" Akage whispered to the two girls.

"No!" Nami and Umi forcefully whispered back in unison.

"Can you not see how cute this is?" Umi demanded, "No way are we interrupting this!"

"Plus, it's funny as hell for us." Nami added.

"Yes I know that. But wouldn't it be funnier to wake them up and see how they react?" Akage pointed out. Suddenly a look of realization appeared on the two girls' faces. This was quickly followed by mischievous expressions.

"Akage you're a genius." Nami told him, hugging him tightly. Akage smirked.

"Yeah I know." He said nonchalantly. Nami rolled her eyes, but laughed anyway.

"Alright smart guy," She fired back, "You get to wake them up." Akage's eyes widened in surprise making the two sisters laugh.

"Me?" He asked incredulously, "Why me?"

"Well you are the genius after all." Umi reminded him. Akage groaned, immediately regretting his attempted humor, and accepted his fate.

Without another word, Akage slowly and quietly approached the two sleeping forms in front of him. As he got within a few steps of the two, he gulped. This was going to be the hard part. Getting this close to two sleeping people with superhuman hearing without waking them was going to be more than difficult. However, it looked as though his prank was going to be successful. Akage got within a foot of his two friends and leaned in close. He paused for a moment to think of how best to surprise them. Kaze's sword caught his eye and he began to wonder how fast that it could be reached after being woken up. Suddenly, two clawed hands of different sizes tightly gripped his arms.

"Never hesitate." A rough voice growled out. Akage nearly jumped out of his own skin as he let out a loud yelp of surprise and fear. The clawed hands let go and Akage sent himself flying back, landing hard on the stone cave floor a few feet from where he had been. This scene was quickly followed by two very satisfied half demons bursting into laughter, while he and the two girls looked on in astonishment.

"You guys should see your faces!" Kaze struggled through laughter, "They're priceless!"

"Akage almost broke the cave ceiling with that jump!" Sai added in between laughs as she held her bandaged ribs to stop them from hurting.

"B-but... but... how?" Akage stammered.

"You guys were... asleep. Right?" Nami added, questioning the two.

"There's no way you could have known... Could you?" Umi pointed out, confused. Sai and Kaze didn't answer at first. They were too busy trying not to die from laughter. It took them a few moments to compose themselves enough to respond.

"Not quite." Kaze taunted, smirk present on his face and laughter in his eyes.

"We've been awake the entire time that you've been watching us." Sai admitted through giggles, "We were just waiting for you guys to try something like that." The jaws of the other three all dropped. They had had no idea.

"So you listened to every word we said?" Nami asked, now feeling completely embarrassed. The two half-demons just nodded smugly.

"And you planned that?" Akage asked, not knowing how it was possible.

"Not vocally of course." Kaze said matter-of-factly, "But it was a mutual feeling that we wanted to screw with you a bit."

"Uggghhh..." Umi groaned, "You two never change..." Sai feigned a look of being offended.

"Hey." She whined, "Speak for yourself."

"Alright guys, calm it down." An authoritative female voice called to them, "Sai still needs to rest. She's nowhere near recovered yet." The five of them looked over to see Ayame striding towards them with Kirara trotting along at her feet.

"Whatever mom." Sai jokingly shot back making Ayame smile.

"Don't call me that! It makes me feel old!" Ayame insisted, "I don't even have half a century on me yet!" Sai burst into laughter yet again from this comment.

"Well you are a mother." Sai pointed out in between laughs, "Plus you're my godmother."

"Dammit Sai." Ayame sighed, "Stop using logic."

"I'll think about it." Sai joked, making Ayame roll her eyes.

"Whatever, just get out of your mate's lap. You're in no condition for that kind of fun yet." She jabbed. This made both Sai and Kaze blush heavily and elicited giggles from the other three. Sai ended up complying out of sheer embarrassment and laid down, with Ayame and Kaze's help, on the pelt that she had occupied the day before.

Ayame shooed away everyone but Kaze and began to remove Sai's bandages. After a quick examination, it was clear that she was healing. However, it was also clear that the healing was going to take an extremely long time for one with demonic blood. It would be at least a few weeks at this rate, maybe even a month. Sai reacted to this news about as well as Ayame thought she would.

"WHAT?!" Sai screamed before wincing in pain and gripping her ribs.

"Sai, it's going to take a while." Ayame insisted, "Your wounds were inflicted by magic and sorceress' magic at that. That means that you won't heal as quickly as you normally would. Just be glad you're still alive." Sai couldn't argue with that. Very few people survived an encounter with a sorceress. Even legendary warriors could be blown aside with ease. Yet, Sai had survived two such encounters and both times, the sorceress ended up worse for wear than she did. It was quite an impressive feat.

"She's right Sai." Kaze immediately agreed, "Take your time to recover. The fact that you're still breathing is enough for me."

"But we don't have time for that!" Sai complained, "We're so close! We have the embodiment's manifestation and all we need is to purify it and then we can move on to defeating Konton! There's no way we can stop now!" Both Ayame and Kaze shook their heads at this.

"No." Kaze said firmly, "Without you at full, we won't be able to purify him. He's beyond tainted and it's going to take all of us to fix that. Not to mention the fact that we definitely wouldn't be able to defeat Konton without your strength. In short, we can't fight without you."

"And if you try to do anything like that before you're better, you really will die." Ayame added seriously. Sai groaned and let herself fall back onto the pelt. She immediately regretted that decision, but didn't allow herself to show pain. Kaze, however, could feel it instantly through his mark.

"And that right there shows you aren't ready to fight." He pointed out, making Sai groan in frustration, "You can't even lay down without pain."

"Why am I always the one getting injured?" She whined, thinking on how many times she had been in a similar situation to this one.

"Because you're the strongest and everyone wants to kill you because of it." Kaze told her, chuckling, "Plus, you always insist on taking the fights alone. I mean, you could let the rest of us have one every once in awhile. I'm sure my sisters or Akage would love to get in on the action at least some of the time. It would save you a lot of trouble." Sai groaned loudly.

"And what about you, huh?" Sai questioned, "You want to get in on it too? Your life too boring for your liking?" Kaze smiled, seeing the obvious trap.

"Hardly." He told her honestly, turning his head to look out of the cave at the early morning light, "I fight because I have to and it's what I'm trained to do. It seems that, right now, fighting is my lot in life. Hell, trying to keep you alive is excitement enough for me. I'd say it's too much actually. Personally, I'd rather just settle down somewhere peaceful, have a family, stuff like that." Sai saw the look of longing on his face as he stared out the mouth of the cave. It made her smile softly.

"Is that really what you want?" She asked, "To settle down somewhere?" Kaze nodded.

"Couldn't dream of anything better." He admitted. Sai hung her head in shame. She knew where her guilt laid in all of this.

"And I'm holding you back from that dream, aren't I?" She said softly. Kaze's expression became serious. He turned towards his mate.

"Sai, you're the reason I have that dream. Until you agreed to marry me, I didn't really have a dream. So as long as I'm with you, my dream can wait. It can wait because being with you is so much better than anything that I could possibly dream of.." He told her honestly, "Without you, the dream becomes a nightmare." Sai couldn't speak. Her brain couldn't form words, so her mouth just hung open slightly. Kaze smiled warmly at her.

"And don't forget one part of my dream. We have to be somewhere peaceful. That can't happen under current conditions." He explained, "So, we're gonna wait until you get better, finish this little mission of ours, and then we'll see what happens." Sai nodded her agreement, still not able to return his smile.

"I just wish we could speed that process up a bit." She lamented.

"Well..." Ayame began, making the Sai and Kaze's heads snap towards the den mother, "There is one way..."

"What is it?" Sai demanded quickly.

"It's not exactly ideal..." Ayame said, before she was cut off.

"Just tell me what it is Ayame." Sai told her bluntly, "I just want this to be over with." Ayame nodded, understanding Sai's desire and her sudden change of heart about wanting everything to be peaceful again over her previous love of the rush of battle.

"You'll need a trained priestess and a powerful one at that." She explained, "The only one I can think of would be your mother." Sai's face paled. That really wasn't ideal.

"Are your sure that there isn't another way?" Sai asked in a defeated voice. Ayame shook her head.

"Ever since you guys stepped out onto the scene, Konton has started to include priestesses to the ones he's purging. Says in his propaganda that they get their power from demons." Ayame told her, "It's ridiculous, but you'd be surprised how many bigoted humans will believe it. Priestesses have helped them for centuries and now they're letting them be killed en masse."

"Disgusting." Kaze spat bitterly. Ayame nodded.

"Kagome is probably fine though." She assured them, "She's extremely powerful, to the point that no demon army could touch her village. Hell, she's probably hidden it in some way or another. Your father's presence rules out any human army succeeding either." Sai nodded, already knowing that much, and groaned loudly.

"My dad's going to kill me when he sees me like this." She whined, making Kaze chuckle.

"Not likely. He'll probably kill me, if anything." He said lightheartedly, "But let's hope he'll listen to my pleas for forgiveness." Sai laughed, ignoring the pain in her ribs.

"He tries to kill you, my mother will never let him live it down." She joked. Ayame smiled.

"True enough." She commented, "Kagome has always been that kind of woman. We'll move you out tomorrow morning." The two nodded.

"Great..." Sai said sarcastically. Ayame rolled her eyes.

"Whatever." She said dismissively, turning from them to attend to other duties and leaving the two of them alone. Kaze sighed.

"Well it's better than nothing, I guess." He commented.

"I guess..." Sai agreed half heartedly, "But what are we going to do about the embodiment? It sure as hell won't be safe to move him. Demons will be drawn to his aura like wildfire and if Konton catches wind that we have him, we'll have more than a few armies snapping at our heels." Kaze nodded. What she said was true. In the wolf den, his aura was masked by the presence of hundreds of wolf demons, but if he were to be transported, then he would draw out every demon they came across. With that kind of attention, it wouldn't take much for one or more of the marauding armies of Konton's Purge to figure something out and come after them. That only left one option.

"We'll have to leave him here." Kaze decided, "The wolves can watch him since it's not like he's going anywhere and my sisters and Akage can stay behind to help out."

"But that would mean that you and I would be traveling alone." Sai pointed out, "Isn't that a bit risky?"

"It is." Kaze admitted, "But we'll attract less attention. Plus, Kirara will be coming with us in order to carry you. That'll make us able to move faster. With that kind of speed, we'll probably make it back to the village in about two or three days." Sai couldn't argue that. It seemed like their best choice. The embodiment would be safe, well as safe as it could be, and travel would be quick.

"Alright." Sai said eventually, "That sounds like a plan." Kaze smiled.

"I just hope this one works." He joked, making Sai laugh.

"Yeah." She agreed, "You and me both."

**So any guesses on whether the plan will work or not? I'll you guys answer that one... It should be pretty obvious... Anyways, I'd love to hear how you guys liked this chapter, so please REVIEW! It would make me very happy and it might just spur me on to not be so lazy in the future. Then we could finally get to the resolution of this story and everybody's happy ending... or maybe this is just the beginning... Who knows? But we won't find out unless you guys help me out here! Sooo... REVIEW!**


	46. Chapter 46

**Looky there, Chapter 46 is here! Hopefully you guys will like it. Please let me know! That means REVIEW!**

**Now to the story!**

Chapter 46

Morning dawned all too soon for Sai the next day. Her immense fatigue from the battle with Haruka had not yet subsided. However, Kaze seemed to be perfectly fine, seeing as he was making himself busy with preparations for their journey. Their other traveling companion, Kirara, seemed content enough just to watch him work.

"What the hell are you doing?" Sai asked through a yawn as she watched Kaze fiddle with a fully loaded bag that Kirara would be carrying. Kaze's head snapped to her as the sound of her voice reached his sensitive ears.

"Well it looks like you're awake." Kaze commented, smiling, "Just making sure we have enough food for the trip." Sai furrowed her brow in confusion and propped herself up on her right, uninjured elbow to make it easier to talk.

"Don't we normally just hunt for food? Why do we need to make Kirara lug supplies around?" Sai asked, curious as to why the new method was being implemented.

"I want to spend most of the day traveling. That means we won't have much time for anything else, including hunting. The wolves offered to provide food for our journey and Kirara doesn't seem to have a problem with carrying the extra weight, so I figured we might as well take advantage of the convenience." Kaze explained. Sai turned her head to Kirara who mewed her affirmation of what had been said.

"Alright, sounds good to me." She agreed, struggling to stand up, but thinking better of it upon feeling the pain in her ribs, "I just want to be able to move normally again." Kaze chuckled at his mate's complaint and smiled warmly at her.

"Well that is why we're taking this trip isn't it?" He pointed out. Sai rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, so stop talking and hurry up so we can go." She said sarcastically, making Kaze laugh heartily.

"Anything for you love." He said before setting the bag in his hands down by several similar ones near Kirara and walking to a different part of the cave. Sai allowed herself to fall back onto the pelt she was on and grimaced in pain upon landing.

"Damn ribs." She cursed bitterly.

About an hour later, Kaze, along with Sai riding on Kirara, were on the road back to their home village. They had said their goodbyes to their friends and to the wolves and received the blessing of Koga and Ayame. With any luck, they would be returning within a week, so there was no need for any long or drawn out farewell. The road on which they were travelling was calm and quiet. There no signs of chaos around at all. Kaze and Sai took note of how strange this was, especially considering current events, but guessed that it was due to the fact that Koga was in tight control of his domain, especially with his alliance to the panthers. At the very least, it made for very speedy travel. Kaze ran as Kirara flew with Sai on her back next to him. They didn't even have to avoid any travellers or merchants along the road who would be frightened by such a group as them. It was completely empty and quite peaceful.

"Hell, if we keep going like this, we might make it back by tomorrow." Kaze pointed out happily. Sai laughed and breathed in deeply the scent of the world around her.

"Yeah, that would be nice. But if that happened, we wouldn't get to enjoy the nice weather." She jested lightheartedly. Kirara mewed her agreement. The weather really was almost perfect. It was satisfyingly warm with a light breeze. The sunshine was strong and only a few puffy white clouds broke the strong light blue of the sky.

"I thought you wanted to get back as soon as possible." Kaze pointed out, chuckling.

"I do, but I might as well enjoy what I've got. Plus, you two are doing all the work, so I might as well catch a nap. I woke up too damn early anyway." Sai said as she curled up on Kirara and nuzzled herself into the cat demons soft fur. Kirara purred in response, enjoying the sensation and to help Sai fall asleep.

"Whatever you say love." Kaze said to himself, chuckling, "Whatever you say."

A few hours later, the sun was high in the sky and Sai was still asleep. Kaze was astonished that she had slept for so long. He almost didn't want to wake her up for lunch, but knew that he would be much worse off for not doing so. That didn't mean that he couldn't admire his mate's sleeping form nuzzled on top of Kirara. Sai suddenly cracked an eye open.

"Something weird on me?" She questioned, quickly getting up to check for anything that would cause Kaze to stare at her so intently. However, she stopped as Kaze began to chuckle at her antics.

"No just admiring the view." He said calmly, walking forward to get one of the bags from Kirara's side. Sai was glad that he didn't notice the light blush that appeared on her face, "Glad you woke up, though. I was dreading having to wake you."

"Well you should be glad that I did wake up." Sai told him, taking his hand and slowly getting off of Kirara, who promptly reverted back into her small, kitten form, "If you had let me miss lunch, I probably would have had to hurt you." Kaze laughed at this and nodded in understanding.

"Oh I'm sure. I know sleeping works up quite an appetite." He joked, making Sai roll her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah whatever." She said dismissively, "Just pull out the food." Kaze smiled warmly at her as she walked over, with some difficulty, and sat down against a tree.

"Gladly." He said, opening the bag.

"Milord." Called a small blue demon that distinctly resembled a lizard, "They are here." Konton smiled wickedly. The half-demons had foolishly fallen into his trap and didn't even know it. Of course he knew that they were on the move. Haruka had been his servant and she had fully served her purpose. It was a shame that she had to die in the process, but it wasn't a great loss. He would have had to do it eventually anyway. She would have rebelled when she found out that it had been him that had killed her family and not Koga, like he had told her. It was good that she had essentially delivered a helpless Sai into his hands before Kaze cleaned up her mess. Now they were in his grasp without him having to worry about their pesky friends.

Konton turned away from the demon without answering and walked to a large table that dominated the tent that he occupied. It was littered with scrolls and other things of little importance. However, it also held something crucial to his plan. He picked up the small black orb. It was blacker than any void. That made sense since all it was was Konton's unholy, unadulterated demonic aura in solid form. When released and directed, it would be enough to bring Sai's precious mate to his knees. Then the two of them and their mangy cat demon would be easy prey for his army. He gripped the orb tightly, forcing more of his aura into it, before tossing it to the small demon.

"Begin."

Kaze stood up and stretched after the meal, before reaching down and helping his mate to stand. They had eaten quickly in order to get back on the road as quickly as possible, but they had to admit that the wolves had done a good job with their food. It was mostly meat that they had hunted, but it was cooked in such a way that not only preserved it for the journey, but also made it delicious. Both of them considered it a shame that they had to scarf it down so quickly. However, they did what had to be done.

Sai, with help from Kaze, walked over to where Kirara was. She had enjoyed the meal too and seemed almost reluctant to begin travelling again. However, it didn't take long for her to stretch out her muscles and transform into her larger, more ferocious form. Sai was helped onto her back and, less than a minute later, they were all back on the road.

"So," Sai called out from Kirara's back, "How long are we going to travel before we stop for the night?" Kaze shrugged.

"Guess we'll figure that out when the time comes." He said nonchalantly, "Might as well go for as long as possible, but we'll stop when we get tired." Sai nodded. She understood his desire to keep moving. At the moment, all she wanted was to be up and running again.

"At least it's peaceful." Sai pointed out, "I don't smell or sense any demons, so I don't think we'll have to worry about any of that for awhile."

"True." Kaze agreed, "But don't you think it's a little strange?" Sai furrowed her brow in confusion.

"What do you mean?" She asked, curious as to what he was getting at.

"Well, normally we'll at least smell the demons that inhabit the forest naturally and aren't aggressive." Kaze pointed out, "Thing is, I don't smell any type of demon around. It's like they're hiding or something."

"I guess that is a little strange." Sai admitted, "Maybe there just aren't many demons in this area."

"Or maybe someone doesn't want the demons just don't want to be found." Called out a high-pitched male voice from behind them. Kaze immediately skidded to a stop, while Kirara turned around in flight in order to face the demon. He was small, and an interesting shade of electric blue. By the looks of him, he was a lizard demon similar to Jaken, but not quite.

"Who the hell are you?" Kaze bit out in an intimidating growl. On the surface, the demon did not appear afraid, but Kaze could smell the fear on him.

"Not important mutt!" The lizard shouted back, reaching into the pocket of the brown robe he wore.

"Why can't we sense your demonic aura? We can barely smell you!" Sai demanded. The demon smirked in response as he pulled out a small, black orb.

"Because my master willed it to be so." He said venomously. Sai and Kaze's eyes widened in realization.

"Konton!" They said in unison. The demon's smirk grew.

"Exactly." He affirmed, outstretching the arm which held the orb straight out in front of him, "Now feel his wrath!" The demon squeezed his hand tightly over the orb. Black smoke began to pour from in between his fingers. Suddenly he released his grip on the orb and the black smoke shot forward in a spike. Sai gasped. The smoke was heading straight for Kaze and it was moving too fast for him to get out of the way. It slammed hard into his chest.

"KAZE!" Sai screamed as Kaze fell to his knees. He was shaking violently as the smoke continued to pour into his body and his eyes kept changing between pure red and pure white. Demon markings burned upon his cheeks as his fangs and claws grew. Another second passed before the last of the smoke overwhelmed his body. As soon as the flow ended, Kaze's body gave out and he slumped to the ground beneath him, "KAZE! NO!" The demon that had released the smoke immediately began to laugh hysterically. Sai turned on him, her own demonic blood flaring to the surface, and let loose a growl that stopped the demons laughing cold.

"What did you do to him?!" She roared, her eyes beginning to bleed red.

"M-my master overwhelmed h-him with his dem-monic aura." The demon stuttered, clearly terrified of the woman in front of him. Sai bared her growing fangs at him.

"Where is your master?!" She demanded, "I'll kill him first and then I'll rip your throat out you bastard!"

"My my..." Came a voice from the forest, calming the lizard demon's quaking, "Saiai, that is no way to treat my servant. What's the expression? Don't kill the messenger?" Sai roared in anger as Konton stepped from the treeline and took a relaxed position well in front of his lizard demon servant.

"Burn in hell!" She bit out, making Konton laugh.

"Why don't you make me, my dear?" He taunted. Sai responded in turn by moving to leap off of Kirara. However, her assault was cut short. Before she could even move off of the cat demon, Sai doubled over in pain from her ribs. In her pain, she fell off of Kirara and landed hard on her broken left arm, making her yelp. Konton laughed maniacally as Sai tried desperately to move, only to be halted by her injuries.

"What's wrong, my dear Saiai? Are you hurt?" He asked mockingly. Sai growled so threateningly that any other demon would have been terrified.

"What does it look like, bastard?" She bit out, "How the hell did you know about this?" Konton threw back his head in laughter as if this was the funniest thing that he had ever heard in his life before turning his murderous gaze back to Sai.

"Did you really think Haruka was working alone or that I wouldn't know the results of your little battle?" He asked incredulously. Sai's eyes widened in realization, "No I knew. I planned the whole thing, including this part."

"And what part is that?" Sai demanded defiantly, making Konton smirk.

"The part where you die." He told her with a tone of finality.

It was as if her fate had already been decided. But then again, it might as well of been. Kaze was unconscious and it was clear that Sai couldn't fight. The only logical outcome of this situation was both of their deaths. Kirara might be able to get away, but it was likely that she would die defending them. This was an incredibly depressing realization. They had been led into a trap and walked happily right into it. Now they would pay dearly for their oversight. None of this, however, would stop Sai from having the last word in the matter.

"Go ahead and try it you bastard!" She yelled across the road, "I won't die without a fight! Your blood will stain this road, before mine does!" Konton laughed straight in the face of her defiance while his eyes glinted with malice.

"I figured you would say something like that." He said plainly, "Which is why you can't smell any demons in this area." Sai's jaw dropped. There was no way. She couldn't believe her foolishness. The trap had been bigger than she could have imagined.

"No..." She gasped.

"Oh yes." Konton said, chuckling, "There is an army of demons in that forest awaiting my command. They will devour you, your cat, and your precious pathetic little mate that's lying beside you." Sai's eyes flashed red. Her rage was complete. It she could move, her claws would have already ripped out Konton's throat. However, that was the problem. She couldn't get up and she couldn't fight.

"Damn you to hell!" Sai screamed.

"See you there." Konton said dismissively, turning away from her and walking back into the woods from which he had come, "But until then, I think I should let my army have a little fun. So, without further ado, BEGIN!" As soon as the word left his mouth, the ground began to shake as thousands of feet began to pound through the forest. Kirara bristled in anticipation, ready to fight to the last, while Sai used her good arm to draw Mondai from its sheathe. She was at least going to take some of these bastards with her.

The demons flooded out of the forest and surrounded them. Their eyes spoke volumes about the bloodlust that filled their hearts. It wasn't hard to tell that all of them wanted a taste of the two succulent half demons before them. A side of cat demon wouldn't be too bad either. Sai and Kirara bared their fangs in defiance.

"I'm sorry, to everyone." Sai muttered to herself, "I've failed you."

The army wasted no time. As soon as all of the demons finished gathering around them, they let loose a yell and charged. Sai raised her blade and slashed it forward.

"DRAGON WAVE!" She roared. In her weakened state, the attack was nothing compared to what it should have been. Barely fifty demons fell to her attack and the rest didn't even pause to mourn their fallen comrades. Sai did her best to fend off the army with her sword, but it wouldn't be long before she gave out. Already she was taking hits. The only reason she wasn't dead was because her kimono was taking the brunt of the assault.

Suddenly, a familiar scent filled her lungs. A scent that she hadn't smelled in a long time permeated the air above her. Sai glanced upward and immediately smirked at her luck. Back up had arrived.

"DRAGON STRIKE!" Came the strong, authoritative voice of the Lord of the Western Lands, Sesshomaru. Green light flooded the battlefield, turning everything around Sai to dust. The demons were obliterated along with all of the ground around where Sai and her companions had been making their last stand. Now all that remained was a massive crater with a small island in the middle for them to occupy.

Sesshomaru floated gently to the ground, outside of the new crater, with his Bakusaiga still drawn. He did not face them, but instead looked to the woods. There was murderous rage in his eyes and his knuckles were white from how tightly he gripped the sword.

"Come out now you coward!" He commanded from where he stood. Konton's voice, that came from everywhere, but did not have a discernable source, responded to him.

"Ahhh, Sesshomaru." The voice said, "I did not count on you making an appearance this day. Well, I must say, that changes things. Worry not, though, we will have our day to do battle. And on that day, you shall die. For now, though, enjoy your time with your mate. Enjoy her and your pup before I rip their hearts from their chests." Sesshomaru's eyes immediately became a murderous red and, without saying a word, he raised his blade and sent a massive wave of energy flying into the trees. It left a massive swathe of destruction in its wake, though it was soon clear that Konton had not been killed in the attack.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk Sesshomaru." Konton's voice taunted, "I told you that we will have our day, but you must be patient. Now I recommend that you attend to your niece and her mate. They seem to be in need of some aid."

After that the voice went quiet. For a moment, Sesshomaru stood still and showed no signs of changing that. However, he suddenly sheathed his sword and floated across the crater over to where Sai was. He looked down upon her injured form on the ground as well as that of her mate and Kirara. His face, as usual, was void of emotion.

"Are you hurt?" He asked. Sai nodded in response, unable to respond through her gritted teeth as she clutched her new and old wounds. Sesshomaru then looked over where Kaze was passed out on the ground. He instantly knew the cause of his unconsciousness by sensing Konton's aura slowly bleeding out of him. This was not the first time in his long life that he had seen something like this.

Sesshomaru kneeled down and, much to her surprise, helped Sai to her feet. Carefully, he leaned her against Kirara before moving over to Kaze. He kneeled down again to pick him up off of the ground and then placed him on Kirara's back. Then he turned to Sai.

"Use your cat demon to travel back to your mother. She will be able to help both you and your mate." He told her, "I will make sure that you are not attacked again in the process." With that, Sesshomaru helped Sai onto Kirara and turned to leave.

"Sesshomaru!" Sai called after him, making him stop, but not look back, "Why did you help us? Why not let us die?"

"You are family." Sesshomaru said plainly, "You may be a half-demon, but so will my son when he is born. Must I also remind you that you are the only one that can defeat Konton? If I were to allow you to die, then I would be doing myself and my family a disservice. However, in the future, I would recommend being more careful. I may not be able to save you next time. You must survive to fulfill your job." Sai nodded, understanding his words.

"I see." She said, "Well then, farewell." Sesshomaru nodded and, without another word took to the sky. Kirara quickly followed after him.

"Dammit!" Konton cursed, slamming his fist into the large wooden table in his tent. The wood splintered under the pressure of the blow and papers were sent flying everywhere.

"M-milord?" The small blue demon that had weld the black orb said tentatively. Without warning, Konton slashed his hand around and let a blade of his demonic energy cleave the lizard demon in half. The scent of his blood filled the tent, calming Konton slightly as it filled his lungs. He took a deep breath of it and tried to calm down.

Konton quickly turned on his heel and walked across the tent. He knelt down to pick up a scroll that he had sent flying across the room and brought it back to the ruined table. Slowly, he unrolled the scroll. The scroll held all of the information that he knew about Sesshomaru and his empire. He scowled at how little that was. All he knew was everything that anyone else on the street knew. Sesshomaru was a very secretive man and Konton had never succeeded in infiltrating his territory, let alone his palace. It seemed that Konton would be going into this fight blind. His only shot would be to take out the girl named Saiai first. The only problem was that, now, he had no idea how to do that. Within a few days, she would be well again and more than a match for his armies and until then, Sesshomaru and her father would be guarding her. Even her precious friends were safe in wolf and panther territory.

Konton was furious. His plan had been foiled. This was not supposed to happen. His victory should have been certain and easy to obtain. Now the situation wasn't looking as certain as it had when he began this endeavor. At least he could take solace in the fact that the embodiment was safe As long as he had that, he could not be killed. And if he could not be killed, then he couldn't lose. Could he?

**What is this? Konton is doubting himself? Impossible! It's not like the bad guy has ever lost right? And Sesshomaru is being protective... of a half demon... What? Crazy right? This story is nowhere near done, but Konton is about realize that he may be screwed... Of course, we already knew that. But let's not think that he'll make it easy for our friends! No, no, no. The journey will be very hard on Saiai and her companions. But, then again, when has saving the world ever been easy?**

**Anyway, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this chapter and the story as a whole, so please REVIEW! It would be awesome to hear from my audience. Also, just to let you know, I'll be going away for a week next week and I won't have internet. That means no update until after next week :( I know! I'm sad too! But I promise that I'll get it up as soon as possible and I'll do my best to make it good for you guys. And hey, if you really need a good for while I'm gone, check out my other one, Crossed Swords and Crossed Lovers, if you haven't already. Hopefully, that one will tide you over until I get back :) Love you all and until next time!**


	47. Chapter 47

**I'm back! Knew that I kept you guys waiting awhile, so I made this chapter extra long and extra informative. This is a turning point in our story and should answer quite a bit of questions that a few of you may have. Hope you guys like it and enjoy where this story is headed!**

**Forward!**

Chapter 47

Darkness shrouded the sky, only to be broken by the many pinpoints of light that were the stars and the bright moon. Sai looked on at the beautiful sight, not really taking it in, but allowing her thoughts to consume her conscious mind instead. She was sure that she was the only one awake at that hour. Well, her and Sesshomaru, who was standing guard at the edge of the village. It was a depressing thought. Normally on nights where she couldn't sleep, Kaze would be there to comfort her. Unfortunately, tonight that luxury was unavailable. Her mate was still unconscious and lying on a mat next to her, suffering from the evil aura that still raged through his veins. The worst part was that Sai was unable to help him. Under normal circumstances, she would have been able to purify the aura just by her presence. However, her injuries were still too great to allot that sort of energy expenditure. Her mother could have done the same, but for some unfortunate reason, she and her father had chosen that day to take a vacation to a hot spring a good journey away from the village. Sai had sent Kirara to fetch them, but she knew that they wouldn't be back at least until the following afternoon.

Sai sighed and averted her gaze from the night sky to her suffering mate. She knew he was in pain, a lot of pain. That much was coming through her mark. It was a disgusting feeling. Konton's aura made her feel dirty just being in its proximity. Sai could only guess how bad it was for Kaze. Seeing the cold sweat that had built on his forehead and the slight tremble in his form made her demon blood boil. It demanded retribution. It demanded blood. She promised that it would have what it desired. Hell, even her human blood wanted Konton dead, but her demon half wanted to revel in his suffering and taste his blood as it flowed liberally from his body. Sai could almost taste the thick, sweet flavor on her tongue.

Sai immediately shook the thoughts from her mind as she felt her eyes begin to bleed red. She couldn't allow her demon blood to rule her now. At the moment, her mate needed her more than she needed revenge.

"Dammit." Sai cursed softly to herself, "I'm useless! I can't even help my mate when needs me! What good am I?"

"Quiet." Growled the prone form beside her. Sai nearly jumped in surprise. Kaze's eyes were still closed, but his fangs were bared and the tremble had lessened.

"Kaze?" Sai asked tentatively.

"How many times do I have to tell you that you're not useless?" He said through his clenched teeth, "I'm getting tired of trying to force that through your thick head."

"But Kaze it's true!" Sai insisted, "First I get hurt and force our journey to stop. Then you get hurt because of me. What does that say about how useful I am?" Kaze's responding snarl stopped her rant in its tracks. It was low and furious.

"Quit it with the self-deprecation and accept who you are." He forced out. Sai could tell that he would have been screaming if he wasn't in such bad shape.

"And who is that Kaze?" Sai pleaded, "Please tell me because I'd really like to know right now." As if in response, Sai felt a wave of power sweep across the room. It was pure, but also ancient and grand.

Sai raised her eyes to search out the source of the energy and came upon Kaze's sword, Jinsei, which was lying against the wall across the room. The blade was pulsing with energy and glowing red. It wasn't a violent red, like that of a demon's eyes, but more of a soft and welcoming shade. The shade could have easily been used to represent such feelings as affection or love. Altogether, it was an otherworldly sight.

Despite its strangeness, Sai felt herself drawn to the blade. The aura it was radiating contained no malice and was almost familiar. As the blade continued to pulse, Sai felt as though it was calling out to her, calling out for her to take hold of the blade. Sai couldn't refuse. She slowly got up, ignoring the pain in her ribs, and crossed the room to the blade. As she approached, the pulsing increased in pace. When she finally stood before its glowing form, its pulse seemed almost like that of a human heart.

Throwing caution to the wind, Sai raised her clawed hand and grabbed hold of the handle of the sword. Suddenly, the glowing red aura that had surrounded the blade invaded her as well. It encompassed her entire body. However, she felt no fear or trepidation from it. Instead, the incursion felt right and she welcomed it. That's when her vision went white.

The whiteness surrounded her. It seemed infinite and undefinable. Yet, she still felt no fear. Sai felt warm in the whiteness that was her new world. She could sense no threat, but she could sense other presences.

"Welcome Saiai." Greeted a deep voice from behind her.

Sai turned to face the voice and was met by a strange sight. There were three people there to greet her. One, the owner of the voice, looked to be a demon of great importance. His armor was grand and decorated in a way befitting a man of high military rank, like a general or a warlord. The demon's long hair was silver and tied in a high ponytail. Blazoned on his forehead was the symbol of the crescent moon, while on each cheek were the distinctive purple stripes that marked a dog demon. To the demon's right was beautiful woman. Her long flowing hair was jet black and her eyes were a striking hazel. The woman wore the traditional clothing of a priestess, but covered it with a set of green armor that appeared to be made from the bones of demons. On the opposite side stood a handsome man with long inky black hair. His irises were blood red, marking demonic blood, though he had no distinctive markings to suggest the same. By his scent, he was a half demon, though not in the same way she was. His flowing purple kimono suggested that he had occupied a position of royalty or aristocracy at some point.

Sai knew that she should have been confused by the assortment of people before her, but something in her told her that it was alright. Something said that she knew who these people were and that they were only here for her benefit.

"Hello." Sai finally returned, bowing slightly to the trio before her. The demon smiled and stepped forward.

"You are just as beautiful as I imagined. Not to mention your power is greater than I could have ever predicted." He praised, while examining her from head to toe. Sai could not help but beam from the compliments as she stood for critical eye, "But I should have expected as much from my granddaughter." Sai's jaw dropped.

"Y-you're my grandfather?" She stuttered, almost unable to believe it, even though his statement rang true to her instincts. The demon smiled and bowed.

"Indeed. I am the great Inu no Taisho, Lord of the Western Lands. Though to family, I am simply Toga." He told her. Sai didn't know how to respond to the new information, so she simply nodded dumbly and prayed that he would continue. He happily obliged, "Saiai, my granddaughter, we have brought you here for a reason, as I'm sure you have surmised. We would not go through the trouble of arranging such a meeting if the purpose were not well worth it. Are you ready to hear it." Sai answered without thinking, based solely off instinct.

"Yes grandfather." She said confidently. The demon smiled warmly in response.

"Then let's get started shall we." With that the demon raised two of his clawed fingers to Sai's forehead.

Suddenly the claws sparked on her skin and the vision before her faded. In it's place, a new scene appeared. Toga was still in front of her with his fingers on her head, but the surrounding area had been transformed completely. She was now in a beautiful open courtyard. There was a koi pond and several cherry blossom trees that were in full bloom. The courtyard was surrounded on all four sides by the walls of a traditional Japanese palace. Its scent was calming, strangely reminiscent to that of a home that she had never known.

"What is this place?" Sai asked in wonder as her eyes scanned the courtyard and the clear blue sky that floated above them. Toga chuckled and lowered his hand to his side.

"This is a memory, Sai." He told her, "My memory to be exact." Sai's brow furrowed in confusion.

"Why did you bring me here? What's so special about this place?" She questioned, making her grandfather laugh.

"You are just like your father." He commented, "This was my home. Specifically, the home I shared with Izayoi before it was burned to the ground." Sai nodded, taking in the information. The familiarity of the scent now made sense. It was what should have been her ancestral home. Something that had been denied her.

"I see." Sai said slowly, rethinking the way she was addressing the place, "So what brings us here? I'm sure it's not just to reminisce. You said as much earlier." The demon general nodded and smiled warmly.

"Indeed I did. You are here to learn from my mate. This is my memory and it shall do as I please." He explained, "We will seek out Izayoi in this palace and you shall listen to her story. It is one that you need to hear." Sai nodded. All of this was exceedingly exciting, though she kept her emotions under wraps. They did not seem appropriate at the moment. But she still couldn't help but be excited to meet her grandmother, someone that her father had talked about all of his life as one of the best women the earth had ever known.

"Lead the way." Sai consented. The demon nodded and turned on his heels towards the palace. Sai followed close behind.

On their way into the palace, they passed several people. Each and every one of them stopped what they were doing and bowed in deference as they went by, not only to Inu no Taisho, but also to Sai. All of them seemed to know who she was in relation to their lord. It was a strange feeling to be treated like royalty.

Sai quickly learned that her grandfather's palace had been huge. Their walk was taking quite a long time, even at the brisk pace that Toga had adopted. Eventually, though, they came to what appeared to be a living room of sorts. In the center of the room was a low table already set with tea. At the table, a beautiful woman in a flowing pink kimono was kneeling. Her hair was long and jet black and it cascaded down her back, while her eyes were a soft, loving brown. Those eyes turned to meet Toga's as he walked into the room. A warm smile appeared on her face that was mirrored on Toga's. Her scent made her easily identifiable to Sai. It was one that, even after more than two hundred years, lingered strongly with her father. The woman at the table was none other than her grandmother, Izayoi. She was every bit as beautiful as she had been told. Perhaps even more so.

As per the traditions that dictated aristocratic respect, or at least the little she remembered from her lessons from Sesshomaru, Sai bowed to her grandmother. Much to her surprise, the woman chuckled at the display of respect, but dipped her head in return.

"My dear, there is no need for such pleasantries." The woman said, "We are family. Now come here and let a proud grandmother dote." Sai laughed, but obeyed. She walked to where her grandmother was and knelt beside her. Toga followed and knelt on the opposite side of the table. Breaking tradition, he poured the tea for the women and then himself. Izayoi took her time in looking over Sai. Nobody said anything during the examination. Sai simply drank her tea and allowed herself to be looked over. Suddenly a broad smile crossed Izayoi's face. She was clearly pleased by what she saw.

"I see Inuyasha mated well." She commented as she used her hand to brush a few strands of loose hair behind her ear, "Your beauty is like that of legends, your strength is beyond belief, and your heart is pure and incorruptible. It makes me proud to be your grandmother." Sai blushed at the praise. She didn't really believe what was being said about her. None of it seemed to fit how she saw herself, no matter what kind of front she put up to others. Toga noticed her reaction to Izayoi's comments and chuckled.

"And now we have come to the reason why I have brought you into my realm." He stated calmly, "You do not believe yourself up to the task that has been set for you. For some reason, you take every opportunity to point out aggrandize each flaw you manage to find or imagine within yourself, while making out your enemies as invincible." Sai averted her gaze. Her grandfather's words struck true in her mind, but she refused to believe them.

"Let's say you're right." Sai began defiantly, "What here is going to make me see otherwise? I mean, it's amazing to meet my family, but I don't get what you're trying to teach me grandfather. It doesn't make sense." Toga smiled at her and shook his head.

"Indeed it doesn't. Not yet, at least. This is only the first of piece of your lesson." He explained, "As for this part, we shall examine your view of yourself in relation to your mate. From what I have seen, you see yourself as an incapable mate. Kaze has been injured on multiple occasions on your watch and he has been put in danger on many more occasions because of you or your actions. At least, that is how you see the situation." Sai immediately narrowed her eyes. She didn't like where this was going.

"It is my fault that he's hurt!" Sai countered, "Kaze has been put in danger countless times on my account and has been hurt and nearly died because of me. Hell, he'd probably be better off without me!" Toga's face immediately hardened at her words. Sai could easily tell how he had been an intimidating demon general.

"Without you, your mate would be dead." He said flatly, "He would have been slaughtered in the demon purges alongside his entire family. You are the only reason that several hundred humans and the united wolf and panther tribes still have their lives. Without you, Konton's armies would have overrun them within weeks." Sai's mouth slammed shut. She couldn't argue that. Without her, more than one of Konton's armies would still be roaming the countryside.

Gently, a soft small hand gripped her shoulder and squeezed it reassuringly. Sai looked over to see her grandmother's concerned, loving eyes gazing deeply into her own.

"He's right you know?" She affirmed, "No mate is ever useless. Even I served my purpose to Toga. As a human, I may not have been able to fight at his side. Yet, in a way, I was his strength. I gave him the support he needed." Toga nodded as he looked lovingly at his mate before returning his gaze to Sai.

"She was my reason for living, my inspiration for fighting, and the love of my life." He admitted, "Without her, I was nothing. It is why I laid down my life defending her, despite the protests of my son and advisors. I did it without a second thought." Tears came to Izayoi's eyes as she remembered the day.

"You must learn that you are everything to your mate, just as your mate is everything to you. No matter what happens, you are never useless to your mate." Izayoi choked out, "Each of you would happily lay down your life for the other. It hurts to see your mate injured, but it is a fact of life. Pain is unavoidable. All you can do is get past it, learn from it, and become closer because of it. That is how love works." Sai balled her fists into her kimono. Her grip was so tight that her claws would have shredded it if it were normal silk. She couldn't restrain the tears behind her eyelids, so they flooded down her cheeks. Sai hated the fact that they were right. She hated the fact that she had no one to blame for Kaze's pain. She hated the fact that she had to accept that she couldn't stop pain from being apart of their lives together. She hated it all, but couldn't argue against it. As much as she hated it, she had to accept it.

At some point, unbeknownst to Sai, she had been taken into her grandmother's embrace. She had buried her tearstained face into her grandmother's bosom and allowed the tears to soak the flawless pink kimono. Her grandmother was whispering words of encouragement into her ears, but she couldn't process them. What she could process, however, was her grandfather standing behind her. He was emitting a comforting aura that seemed to calm her.

After a moment, her tears stopped and her mind was at ease yet again. Her resolve was back. Somehow, her outlook had been altered. Her confidence had returned and, along with it, her strength and will to keep fighting. With her grandmother's help, they stood and faced the great demon lord. He held out both of his hands to her and, as if by instinct, she put both of her own in his with her palms facing the ceiling. Slowly, he began to bleed his aura into her palms. The aura swirled within her hands until it settled down into a definite form. Now, staring back at her, was the symbol of her clan. A purple crescent moon was blazoned in the center of each palm. They glowed softly for only a moment before fading back into her skin, leaving no trace that they had been there.

"You have received my blessing Saiai." The demon lord said softly.

"And mine as well." Izayoi added lovingly. Sai looked up from her palms to her long dead family members. Both were staring at her, almost like they were waiting for something. Sai smirked and nodded confidently. Toga returned her smirk and the palace around her began to fade.

Only a moment later, Sai was back in the land of white. Her grandfather still stood in front of her, but now the other two had returned behind him. They stood perfectly still with their hands clasped behind their backs. An untrained observer would think that they were completely oblivious to the events that had just transpired. However, Sai was a bit more clever than that. She could tell easily by the glint in their eyes that they were impressed.

"I believe my portion of this endeavor has come to an end." Toga commented, stepping back to his place in the middle of the other man and woman.

"Indeed it has my lord." The armored priestess agreed as she stepped forward, "Now I believe it's my turn." Sai looked at the woman. It was clear that the woman was priestess. However, what was surprising was the sheer amount of power radiating off the woman. The only one that Sai had seen with spiritual power so great, besides herself, would have to be her mother. No other priestess had such awesome reserves of power. If there had been another, Sai would have been able to feel them from the other side of Japan. That simple fact gave away the identity of the warrior that stood before her.

"You are Midoriko, I presume." Sai guessed with a bow of her head. The woman returned the gesture.

"My my. You are a clever one Saiai." She praised with an impressed half smile gracing her beautiful face, "Indeed. During my time on earth, I was Midoriko. For all intents and purposes of this meeting, I am her still." Sai nodded. From what her mother and Miroku had explained to her during her training as a priestess, she knew that upon death a soul did not necessarily maintain a specific identity. It was what allowed for reincarnation. The souls of great priestesses were especially famous for this.

"I understand." Sai assured the woman.

"Good." She said shortly, before placing two fingers on Sai's forehead as her grandfather had done previously.

Before she knew it, Sai found herself in a dark cave, lit only by the combined spiritual power of her and Midoriko. The warrior priestess removed her hand from Sai's forehead and turned to stare into the darkness of the cave. Silence pervaded the cave for a long while. It became palpable, but not necessarily uncomfortable. The silence seemed more out of respect and reverence of days of old than anything else.

"Do you know this place?" Midoriko asked suddenly, her voice barely above a whisper. Sai thought for a moment. The place struck her as familiar, too familiar for her liking. It seemed to be somewhere that held great significance, not only to the two women inside at the moment, but to the world. Yet Sai still could not identify it.

"No. It's familiar, but I have no idea where we are." She admitted. Midoriko chuckled softly before turning back to face the girl.

"I didn't figure you would. The fact that it is familiar at all is a surprise. You are more talented than I thought." The priestess said cryptically. Sai furrowed her brow in confusion. She didn't like mysteries, especially ones that involved her own fate.

"So where are we?" Sai pressed making Midoriko smile.

"We are in the cave that claimed my life." She said matter-of-factly. Sai's eyes widened. That explained more than a few of her questions.

"This is the birthplace of the Sacred Jewel? But I don't see evidence of your battle." Sai pointed out.

"As with your experience with Inu no Taisho, this is my memory. Clearly, I don't remember the events after my death, even though I am aware of them. That is why this memory shows the cave as it was while I prepared for my final battle." Midoriko explained.

"I see. My grandfather took me into his memories to reestablish my will to continue on fighting alongside my mate. I'm assuming that you have a similar purpose for bringing me here with you." Sai surmised. Midoriko smiled and nodded, clearly impressed.

"Kagome raised a clever child. I should have figured as much from the little I saw of her during her time trapped within the Sacred Jewel." She said, "Yes, my purpose is in encouraging you in your fight."

"In what way?" Sai questioned, "I've already agreed to put everything into my fight against Konton. I've accepted my fate and place as a mate. I'm ready for blood. What else do I need to be encouraged for?" Midoriko chuckled and shook her head.

"My dear, those are all things born of your demon blood." She pointed out, "That is why one of the greatest demon lords of all time took on the responsibility of instilling them into you. My place is to encourage your pure human blood as a priestess and make you reconcile yourself to your abilities in that realm."

"What?" Sai said dumbly, "What don't I get about being a priestess? I've been raised as one since birth. It's who I am." Midoriko sighed, frustrated at having to explain this one piece of information.

"It's not your identity as a priestess that is in question." She stated, "It is your unique position as such. You are being called to do something that no other priestess has ever been called to do, nor even able to do. As you have been told several times, you are the only one that can defeat Konton and return peace. Saiai, it is your job to purify and thus repair the rift that has been torn in our world. Konton has ripped the natural order of the world to shreds. Animosity between human and demon has never been greater and balance no longer exists. It is your job to change this. Essentially, the fate of the world relies on you." Sai swallowed hard.

"Oh." She said lamely. There was no way that Sai could have expected this. Hell, there was no way that she could even begin to think about how to approach such a monstrous and monolithic objective.

"Indeed." Midoriko agreed, "I can see it in your eyes that you doubt yourself. You do not think yourself capable of such a task. That is why I have brought you here."

"So how the hell am I supposed to save the world?" Sai demanded. Midoriko smiled knowingly, but shook her head.

"That is for you to figure out Sai, and you will, when the time comes." She assured the frantic girl, "My place is to make you see that you can. And I will do that by letting you see your own true potential. You true power, if you will."

"How?" Sai's question was simple, only one word. However, the answer was a little more difficult and not something that could just be explained away. Midoriko turned from Saiai to stare into the darkness. Incidentally, the place she chose to stare at was the exact place where she stood upon her death.

"Do you know why I died here?" She asked, seemingly avoiding the question. Sai arched her brow. She was a little annoyed at having her question blown off, but was more curious as to the nature of the one now posed to her.

"Of course." Sai assured the woman, "Every priestess worth her salt knows that. You used your soul to imprison the souls of the demons gathered around you."

"You're right, at least, on the surface." Midoriko said, "No, the real reason for my death was my own folly, my own lack of foresight." Sai was taken aback. This was a side of the story that she had never heard. In every telling of it, Sai had always heard that Midoriko's final act was valiant and ingenuous. Now the object of such praise was refuting it and calling the action that made her a legend foolish.

"I mean no offense," Sai began cautiously, "but that makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. How was your act folly?" Midoriko chuckled and changed her gaze to peer deeply into the darkness that shrouded the ceiling of the cave.

"I did not realize one simple piece of information." She began, regret entering her voice for the first time, "No priestess is ever presented with a task that is beyond her power. We can only be undone by our own doubt of that power." Sai's jaw dropped.

"So that means-" She began before being cut off.

"That I was a coward? A fool? A little girl terrified of the job presented to her that did everything she could to run away from it? Yes, it does." Midoriko finished bitterly, "But for you, the meaning is a bit happier. It means that you have the ability to fulfill your duty and to bring peace to the world by repairing the damage done to it."

The warrior priestess turned to stare intently at Sai, looking for some reaction from the girl. However, she got none. Sai's face was hard and her eyes almost showed the thoughts swirling around behind them. None of them were discernable from the outside, so Midoriko simply had to wait for gratification.

Sai stood stock still. Her thoughts had immobilized her, requiring every neuron her brain had available. If what Midoriko had said was true, that meant she couldn't lose. It would be physically impossible if she simply believed it as such. The only problem with that was that it seemed much too good to be true. Nothing in life was ever supposed to be so easy. Yet at the same time, the thought of the implications set her spiritual power aflame. By its very nature, it seemed to scream the validity of what Midoriko was saying. Her own soul shouted its acceptance of a truth that had never been known by anyone among the living. The heart of the matter soon revealed itself to her. In reality, it was a simple fact that she had been over complicating and running from for a long time. She could win.

"So when do I start?" Sai asked suddenly, confidence filling her voice. A broad smile crossed Midoriko's face.

"Soon my dear. Soon." She assured her.

As the last word left Midoriko's mouth, Sai felt an electric sensation burn up her arm. She looked down to see blue sparks jumping their way up her sleeves. Each set of sparks reached her shoulders and turned in towards her chest. The two individual trails met in the middle, just below her neck, with a flash a bright blue light. Now, in the place where they joined, the image a burning flame glowed blue. This mark, just like the ones from her grandfather, soon faded without a trace of their existence.

"Now the blessing of humanity resides with the blessing of demons." Midoriko said as the world before her faded away to the familiar, warm white.

Once again, Sai was faced by the three people that had come to help her. She had the blessing of two and now only one remained to advise her. There was mystery surrounding this last man. Sai had been able to identify the previous two with relative ease, though her grandfather had surprised her a bit. However, she had no clue who this last man was. All she knew was that he had been a half-demon in life and that his piercing red eyes were unnerving, to put it mildly. In truth, if the man wasn't smiling, those eyes would be utterly terrifying.

Midoriko stepped back to join her comrades. She looked thoroughly pleased with her pupil. Apparently, Sai had performed well.

"Alright, that's two out of three lessons done." Toga commented happily. Midoriko nodded, but looked as though she was trying to hold in a laugh.

"True enough." She agreed, "But she still has one left."

"Indeed." The third man added. His voice was deep, smooth, and almost as unnerving as his eyes, "And it's a lesson I sincerely hope she passes." Sai cocked an eyebrow.

"Is there a reason I wouldn't?" She questioned, curious and offended at the same time, an interesting sensation to say the least.

"My dear Saiai, there are a thousand reasons why you wouldn't." He told her without a single doubt evident in his voice. It did nothing to help Sai's newfound confidence, "But we can always hope can't we?" Sai rolled her eyes defiantly.

"Yeah. I'm sure we can." She commented sarcastically, making the man smirk.

"You're just like your father, you know." He observed. Sai's gaze immediately snapped to meet the man's, "Though, fortunately enough for you, you inherited your mother's looks. An interesting combination, to be sure."

"How the hell do you know my parents?" Sai demanded. The man simply laughed at the ferocity in her voice.

"You could say that we were familiar with each other. However, I think my name would provide a better explanation." He suggested mockingly. Sai growled in frustration at the man's roundabout antics.

"Then what is your name?" She questioned, doing her best to modulate her growl and failing miserably.

"I am Naraku." The red eyed half demon stated confidently, without a hint of deceit or sarcasm. Sai's growl stopped cold as her jaw dropped. She closed her eyes and shook her head vigorously to try to organize her thoughts and make sure that she had heard correctly. Much to her disbelief, she did.

"Wait what? My parents defeated Naraku, who was really evil." Sai pointed out, "How could he be here in an assembly like this?" Naraku simply chuckled.

"Your mother purified my soul when the Sacred Jewel was destroyed." He reminded the girl, "That means that my soul is no longer tainted with evil. It is pure, much like yours. For that, as much as I hate to admit it, I owe your parents a debt. This is how I intend to pay it. By helping you rid the world of an evil even greater than I was." Sai paused for a moment. She had to massage her temples in order for her brain to be able to take in the new information without causing a migraine. The man's logic was sound, no matter how much Sai wanted to argue it. This man was none other than the Naraku her parents had defeated.

"Well then Naraku," Sai began, the name feeling strange on her tongue, especially when not being spat in hate, "Lead the way." The man in question smirked.

"But of course my dear." With that, Naraku stepped forward and placed two fingers onto Sai's forehead and the whiteness that was her world faded away yet again.

The area that she occupied now surprised her greatly. Not for any special significance that it held, but instead for the opposite reason. Sai felt no attachment to the area as she had with the place in which she now stood with Naraku. How could she? All it was a grassy hill that overlooked an immense green field. A light breeze floated through air and tickled Sai's face. There weren't even any telltale scents on said breeze that could reveal why Naraku had chosen such a place for the lesson he was supposed to teach.

Naraku dropped his hand to his side and moved to stand on Sai's left. And like that they stood, silent and unmoving, for several minutes. Sai couldn't take it.

"Alright, I'll bite, why the hell are we here?" She asked, clearly frustrated, "What significance does this damn field have? Because I don't see it."

"Well aren't you the curious one?" Naraku chuckled, "This field has no significance. In the years following this memory, it would become the site for a massive battle, but that held no sway in my choice of it. No, we are here for no other reason than I find it a beautiful spot." Sai's eyes widened in surprise. She couldn't believe this man.

"Are you kidding me?" She asked incredulously.

"Not in the slightest my dear." He said plainly, "I came upon this field while I was still a human by the name of Onigumo. That day, my legs were tired and my body needed a rest, so I took it on this hillside and admired the view for a few hours. It was relaxing and calmed my mind, if only for the moment."

"I see." Sai commented, already annoyed. However, she couldn't help but agree that the area had a certain calming effect on her, "Well, in honor of your rest that day, I say we sit down." Her sarcasm was enough to make Naraku laugh.

"I could not agree with you more Saiai." He said as they both settled down into the grass and stared out at the field as the breeze blew over the grass.

"So what is your lesson about?" Sai asked, her annoyance now forgotten.

"Balance." Naraku answered simply, "The most essential thing in our world. Without it, the world falls into chaos and nobody wins. I learned that lesson at the price of my life." Sai nodded, understanding his words.

"I know that I'm supposed to restore balance. The other two did enough to explain that and how to go about doing it." Sai told him, "So I don't understand why you feel the need for this third lesson if it's about balance." Naraku smiled warmly.

"This lesson is not about balance in the world, but about the unique balance within you Saiai." He explained, "You hold portions of the world within you that would seemingly rip each other apart upon even the slightest contact. In reality, there are three distinct pieces of you, that of heaven, hell, and earth. In more simple terms, divine, demon, and human. As we know, the two extremes manifest themselves in union with humanity quite often. However, never in history have all three existed in union. That is, until you Saiai. You are the bridge of all three. That is why, in some sort of poetic justice thought up by those more powerful than even we the dead realize, you were chosen to repair the balance of the world. But as I said, this lesson is not about that. It is about you." Sai nodded, taking in the information. She already knew all of it, of course, but there was something about how it was being put to her now that made it seem new and fresh. Something about Naraku's words made the knowledge seem much more meaningful than it ever had before in the many times she had heard it.

"So what do I need to learn about balance within myself?" Sai asked, "I've lived with all three parts of me for my entire life and I've never had a problem. I mean, I've never suddenly burst into flames or anything." Naraku chuckled at her words and shook his head.

"Indeed. That is true." He agreed, "But what you must learn is that the three parts that make you up are not really opposites. Rather, they are simply three different manifestations of the same thing. That means that they don't cancel each other out or destroy each other by nature. Instead, it is the opposite. It is the nature of these three to unify and create something more. This balance of the three worlds creates the greatest power this universe has ever known, which hasn't existed since the worlds split. That power is manifesting itself again through you Sai and you must be the one to harness it through balance within yourself." Sai was speechless. First, she was the one responsible for saving earth, only one of the three worlds. Now she was responsible for marking the return of the power of the three worlds united, which hadn't existed since the inception of the universe. Her day was just getting better and better.

"So how do I do that?" Sai asked, utterly confused to how to go about her task.

"You must let the three portions of your soul to flow together. Divine must join with demon on the plain of humanity." Naraku told her cryptically.

Sai took a deep breath and looked inside of herself. It wasn't hard to find the three portions of herself. She had trained herself to tap into them at will during battle, so finding them while sitting calmly was almost easier than breathing. Each portion held its place within her. The problem was that they were all separate. She would have to forge the paths between them. It was a task that, before now, she would have thought of as crazy and suicidal but now seemed like the most logical thing in the world.

Tuning out everything else, Sai brought her focus completely within herself. Her concentration was complete and unbreakable. Slowly, she began the arduous task of forging new paths for the power that raged within her. Each piece cut its way through the darkness and struggled to find her center. Her demon was the first to arrive. With a jolt, her spiritual powers unified with it. Now all that was left was her humanity. Sweat poured down her brow as she forced it through the unknown territory to the center of her being.

Suddenly, her humanity flashed forward and met the other two. Immediately the unified pool spread throughout her body and filled her being completely. A blinding flash of white light within her blotted out her thoughts and drove her deeper with herself. The power continued to swirl and tumble within her. However, as Sai continued to fall within her mind, the power calmed to a point of utter peace and stability. It was now under her control.

Using this newfound strength, Sai pulled herself from the fall and ripped herself upwards. The sensation was incredible. She had never felt more alive. Sheer energy was coursing through every portion of her inner being. It was almost as if she held the fate of everything solely within her. The power coursing through her screamed that, indeed, it did. She wasn't going to dare to argue with it.

With one last jolt, Sai came flying out from within her own mind and actually left the ground, only to land a few feet behind where she had been. Cautiously, she opened her eyes and was met with the warm white that signified the start of all of this. She didn't have to look to know that the image of a sword was glowing bright red upon her back. The tingling from it faded, along with the image, and that's when she knew that she had successfully received Naraku's blessing. Not only that, but she had successfully unified the three worlds.

Sai struggled to her feet in the white world and was met by the pleased and happy stares of her grandfather, Midoriko, and Naraku. She had done well.

"Well that was an interesting exit." Naraku joked.

"Indeed it was." Midoriko agreed, doing her best not to laugh as Sai tried to steady her feet, "I must say that it was not how I expected her to come back to us."

"The important thing is that she is back." Toga concluded, while he himself fought back hysterical laughter. Sai rolled her eyes.

"I'm right here, you know!" She pointed out, annoyed, "And I'm fine thanks."

"For once, my granddaughter," Toga began softly, "I believe you are right in saying that." Sai smiled triumphantly and approached her three mentors.

"So what now?" She asked, curious. The three of them smiled.

"Now it is time for you to put into practice what you have learned." Midoriko told her, "You have received all of our blessings and are ready to progress."

"She's right." Naraku affirmed, "The world is now ready and willing to be saved by the one and only Saiai."

"The granddaughter of Inu no Taisho, the great general and Lord of the Western Lands." Toga added proudly, eliciting chuckles from the other two. Sai, though, only smiled weakly. She actually was hoping to stay a bit longer.

"I'm going to miss you guys." Sai said tearfully. The three in front of her gave her knowing smiles.

"Actually, you won't have to." Midoriko said teasingly.

"Because we all know that you couldn't live without us." Naraku added, drawing a laugh from Midoriko. Sai's brow furrowed in confusion.

"What do you mean? It's not like you can come with me." She pointed out.

"Well, in a way, we can." Toga corrected, "We've always been with you, actually."

"I wasn't lying when I said that I was no longer who I once was." Midoriko said, "In reality, none of us are."

"Our souls are not our own. Instead, they belong to you." Naraku explained, though Sai did not fully understand his meaning until her grandfather spoke up.

"Our three souls make up the three pieces of yours, which you just unified." He clarified, "We will always, and always have been, inside you, beside you, and fighting alongside you. This was just the only way that we could get you to realize your full potential." Sai's heart warmed at the realization. These people were apart of her and would always be there for her when she needed help. It was an encouraging thought.

"Alright then!" Sai said excitedly, "Let's get back then! We've got a world to save!" The three pieces of her that stood before her nodded and raised there hands to Sai. Midoriko and Naraku each grabbed a shoulder, while Toga put his hand on her head and ruffled her hair affectionately. With that, the white world faded to black and the welcome smell of her home filled her lungs once again.

**Fun right? Little bit of cliche at the end, but hey, everybody loves cliche every once in awhile. Anyways, hope you liked it. I would LOVE to hear what you guys thought, good or bad. Also, if this chapter didn't answer the questions you had, please ask because I will answer them. That is, unless you ask what happens next... Yup, well, I enjoyed writing this and hope you enjoyed reading it. Til next time guys!**


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